With many seniors planning on attending college this fall, one of the biggest deciding factors on what school to go to is cost. Many students are unable to go out of state due to the high cost, but one of the best tools that students have access to the the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) Program.

The WUE Program is an agreement between the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE), a group of sixteen U.S. states and territories, that was started in 1987. The WUE Program is a program that allows students to go to schools out of state, for close to the price of in-state. For example, to go to CSN from out of state, it would cost $10,842 per year, but with the WUE Program, it would only cost $4,805 per year. That’s over a 50% discount! The difference in discount varies from school to school, but it will get students a huge discount on tuition.

Franklin Dela Rosa, senior, said, “I think that it is very beneficial for seniors, it can make it much easier for a senior to go to the school that they want, especially because college is so expensive these days. The WUE program will grant me and other seniors an opportunity that we would not have otherwise.”

The eligibility for being a WUE student can also vary depending on the school. For example, at Northern Arizona University, a maximum number of students are granted WUE tuition, but at Arizona State University, any student coming out of high school who had a 3.0 GPA or higher can qualify as a WUE student. Also, on average, students must keep at least a 2.5 GPA or higher in college.

The main intent of the WUE Program is to provide an affordable college tuition for students in western states. ”

“I like that it can help any student looking to go to college, especially those who don’t have as much, afford to go to the school that they want to go to. I like that the WUE program will allow me to have a better discount than with most scholarships, and I think that this is an invaluable college resource for any future college student,” said Dela Rosa.