Higher education is vital to Oklahoma’s economy

Oklahoma State University - News and Communications




Many people don’t realize that higher education in Oklahoma is a bargain compared to other institutions around the country. With the focus being on education across the state, it is more important than ever to have all the facts regarding the cost and impact of higher education.
“Oklahoma State University ranks as one of the nation’s best in most affordability measures,” said OSU President Burns Hargis. “The affordability and efficiency of OSU helps Oklahoma’s economy by attracting students and faculty to the state and by providing an educated workforce ready to help their local communities. And as a premier land-grant university, we also support the state through wide-ranging research and our extension efforts in every Oklahoma county.”
Information regarding the cost of higher education can be broken down into four main categories: growth, efficiency, affordability and funding.

Growth




With meeting the goals of record enrollment and record fundraising, OSU has been able to partially offset the decreases in state funding. In fact, OSU has hit record highs in system-wide, Stillwater-campus and freshman enrollment in the last five years.
Of course, a lot of OSU’s success can be attributed to the growth of undergraduate enrollment. Over the past six years alone, undergraduate enrollment at OSU-Stillwater has grown by 3,707 students — an average increase of more than 600 students per year.






Efficiency
OSU has continued to be efficient in managing and reducing costs, while still offering a great value to students. This diligence in efficiency has kept OSU’s institutional support cost per student at just over $1,000 — 41 percent of the national average for four-year public institutions.
OSU has also been an innovator in establishing an energy management program. The behavioral-based program has served as a model for the state and has saved OSU more than $35 million since July 2007.

Affordability





Did you know nearly 50% of OSU Students graduate with no debt?
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