There was some concern that the WICHE program might have had some unintended consequences. This is in contrast to the perception that the WWAMI program works well. Can you provide some basic information on the WICHE program, such as participants, cost, etc?

There are 1,550 students from Alaska participating in the Western Undergraduate Exchange (WUE) program. Students from the 15 states participating in WUE can attend public institutions in any other WUE state at a tuition rate of 1.5 times the in-state charges, rather than paying full out-of-state tuition charges. The number of students coming to Alaska on the WUE program has doubled in the last three years to 183. Alaskans account for 9% of total WUE program participants, down from 11% three years ago. Alaska remains the largest net exporter of students in the program.

An analysis of the programs chosen by WUE students in 1998 showed that Alaskans attending out-of-state were enrolled in 71 programs not offered at UA. There were however, other Alaskan students enrolled in 41 programs that were available within the UA system. We plan to conduct another analysis of programs based on 2001 WUE enrollment. Although UA has implemented 23 new programs in the last three years, I do not believe the WUE numbers will change dramatically for at least another 3-5 years.

A survey of University of Alaska students indicated that their decision to attend UA was determined by price and location, not programs. According to national surveys students choose institutions primarily for their program of study; this is true for our peer institutions. Until the University of Alaska offers a broader array of programs to attract more students Alaska will continue to be a net exporter of students.

What is the extent of the relationship between UA and (a) Alaska high school counselors, and (b) outside high school counselors? Seems this is a fairly important link between UA and the student pool they would like to “catch”.

High school counselors play a role in recruiting, but it is surprisingly small. Only 20% of Alaska high school students reported that counselors influenced their decision of where to attend. High school counselors today are more reactive, based on student problems, rather than proactive working towards a student’s future. Nonetheless, high school counselors are an important distributor of college information.

UA has enhanced (and in UAA’s case established) recruitment offices on its campuses during the last three years. Members of the recruiting staff visit high schools on a regular basis. This fall, the University of Alaska and the Pacific Northwest Association of College Admission Counselors (PNACAC) will host a workshop and coffee to gain more exposure with the Alaska School Counselor’s Association (ASCA) during their conference in Anchorage. Continuing efforts will be directed toward building and maintaining these high school relationships.

The following items are with respect to the issue of the “brain drain”. I believe that a major component contributing to students attending schools outside is their desire to experience living in another state, another culture if you will. With that in mind, does the university offer any type of ‘exchange’ program that would allow a student to live for a year in another state while taking classes toward a degree through UA (i.e., something akin to an exchange program abroad)?

UA offers both the National Student Exchange and International Student Exchange Programs to full-time undergraduates. These programs allow a student to attend a participating institution at UA tuition rates. These have been popular marketing features for the UA scholars program. Another popular feature of the UA Scholars program is the option to attend out-of-state in the first year and if the “grass isn’t greener out-side” return to UA for the next year on the scholars program. There has been a 55% increase during the last 3 years in the number of Alaska high school graduates who transferred back to UA from out-of –state. In 1998, 139 Alaska high school graduates transferred back. In the Fall of 2001, 215 students transferred back to Alaska. Students transferring back represent 7% of Alaska’s high school graduates attending college as first-time freshmen.