Investing in a college education makes sense. Research shows that a bachelor’s degree typically doubles an individual’s earning power over a lifetime, and advanced degrees have an even greater impact. The challenge is keeping tuition affordable for students.
At UND, as at other colleges and universities, tuition is part of a total revenue stream that also includes legislative appropriations, grants, gifts, and income from private and public partnerships.
The University has been working to ensure that financial support, through an increased endowment, research revenues, technology commercialization, some tuition increases, and financial flexibility, will allow UND to grow and prosper.
UND provides a stellar education that matches or exceeds that of peer institutions, with a fraction of the support per student that’s available to those colleges or universities. North Dakotans continue to support higher education at a rate near the top of all states; however, the smaller population, along with lower per-capita income, means that there simply is less money available for higher education.
Commercialization efforts, or turning research discoveries into income, are crucial. The development of inventions and technology that stem from UND research is beginning to move ahead as we build infrastructure and form business alliances through the UND Research Foundation. The Center of Excellence in Life Sciences and Advanced Technologies (COELSAT) research and commercialization facility will play a key role in driving economic impact with UND’s partners. |
The COELSAT facility, endorsed by Gov. Hoeven’s Centers of Excellence Program, will house UND research ventures partnered with outside companies and corporations. Currently, six companies, representing four life sciences and advanced technology clusters, are on board. One company, Avianax, was jointly formed with the UND Research Foundation.
Salaries
The University’s potential for the future is directly connected to faculty recruitment and retention. Achieving competitive salaries is crucial. UND competes nationally for the best faculty, and it’s a priority to increase salaries for both faculty and staff in order to attract and retain the best people possible.
In fact, between 2002 and 2007 UND achieved the greatest percentage increase of any university within the Midwest Higher Education Compact. Over those five years, faculty salaries increased approximately 25 percent.
These increases, made possible by the flexibility provided through the Legislative Higher Education Roundtable, helped reduce the gap between UND and national faculty salary averages. There is still much to do, but attracting and retaining top-notch faculty means better teachers for students.
Funding sources for those salary improvements have come from tuition increases, higher enrollment revenues, internal reallocation, increased appropriations from the state legislature, and new money from the North Dakota Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research (ND EPSCoR), grants and partnerships. |
