Does RVU Need More Profits? Tuition Increased

[futuredoc15]

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Looks like tuition is jacked up to $43384 for 2011-12 with over 1K per year in fees tacked on. See: http://www.rockyvistauniversity.org/tuition.asp
Appears to me to compare to tuition of 2008-9 $34200 --------2009-10 $36450---------2010-11 $37908-------
see: http://www.aacom.org/data/tuitionfees/Pages/default.aspx and http://www.aacom.org/data/tuitionfees/Documents/Tuition-Fees-1st-Yr-2010-11-n-historical.xls

IMO it will not be hard to be profitable when you can just continue to hike tuition at will.
---I think that the tuition and fees are getting out of hand

 

[LifeTake2]

Honestly the cost is not that unreasonable, by DO standards, but it blows my mind they raised tuition 30% in 4 years. That screams either poor management, or they knowingly set their price low to attract students and have known this increase was coming all along. Either way that is not a good way to run a medical school (or a business which RVU is as well)

 

[MSU2009]

The price tag on that school seems even more ridiculous. Though I have to ask, would it get as much attention if the school wasn't for-profit?

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

So none of the NPO schools raised tuition this year? I doubt it. It is entirely plausible they underestimated costs, and it is entirely possible there are other legitimate reasons. The University of MN has increased it's tuition by about 10% every year for the last 8 years that Pawlenty was in office. All while the staff has had a pay-freeze for at least 4 of those years. 43k is inline with most of the other schools' tuition with the exception of MSU's in-state tuition and LECOM's tuition... I don't think that the cost is unreasonable... and I think this is another attempt to make them out to be a demon when they aren't

 

[LifeTake2]

So none of the NPO schools raised tuition this year? I doubt it. It is entirely plausible they underestimated costs, and it is entirely possible there are other legitimate reasons. The University of MN has increased it's tuition by about 10% every year for the last 8 years that Pawlenty was in office. All while the staff has had a pay-freeze for at least 4 of those years. 43k is inline with most of the other schools' tuition with the exception of MSU's in-state tuition and LECOM's tuition... I don't think that the cost is unreasonable... and I think this is another attempt to make them out to be a demon when they aren't

SBB, if you want to defend RVU, go right ahead nobody attacked them; just pointed out the financial risk of attending a school that keeps raising their tuition.

But don't make up S**T just to try and make a point.

RVU tuition from 08/09 to 11/12 went up $9,184 or 26.8%
For the same time period Univ of MN Medical school when up $1,519 or 14%.

FYI, 10% increases each of those 4 years (not to mention the 10yrs you claimed) would have been 46% over 4 years.

The fact is RVU may be an excellent school, but they are a business and the decision to set tuition low and then raise dramatically shows they are in it for the money. There is nothing wrong with making money, their investors demand it, as would I if I owned it. But don't try to defend their decision to make money, that is why RVU exists.

 

[ShyRem]

If you look at it by the numbers, they have raised tuition overall by 26.8%. UNE, by raising tuition 6% every year will have students paying 26.2% more in their final year than the year they applied.

I realize that is one year difference, but still not so much in the grand scheme of things. It's about on par. Certainly the cost is now more in line with other osteo schools - which overall is absolutely outrageous IMHO.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

They're saving up so that they can bribe COCA into giving them accreditation.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

SBB, if you want to defend RVU, go right ahead nobody attacked them; just pointed out the financial risk of attending a school that keeps raising their tuition.

But don't make up S**T just to try and make a point.

RVU tuition from 08/09 to 11/12 went up $9,184 or 26.8%
For the same time period Univ of MN Medical school when up $1,519 or 14%.

FYI, 10% increases each of those 4 years (not to mention the 10yrs you claimed) would have been 46% over 4 years.

The fact is RVU may be an excellent school, but they are a business and the decision to set tuition low and then raise dramatically shows they are in it for the money. There is nothing wrong with making money, their investors demand it, as would I if I owned it. But don't try to defend their decision to make money, that is why RVU exists.

Oh, sorry, the UMN board of regents has issued tuition increases to the general university every year for the last IDK, 10+ on average of about 5%/yr. Sorry, the med school has a policy of fixed tuition, you pay the same rate for your four years. So whatever it is when you enter it is when you leave. Hate to break it to you but many schools increase tuition and it is the board that increases tuition and they can do it for whatever reason. Like if someone at LECOM wants a new car, they can raise tuition if the board votes to pass it. I don't think you all realize that EVERY school is a business! EVERY SCHOOL operates to make money! If they don't, they are in the red and they will raise fees/tuition to make up the difference. The UMN has the 3rd highest tuition in the Big 10. And "nobody attacked them" I think that's the whole point of this post. That because they are for-profit if they increase tuition, whether or not you know the reasoning behind it you will assume it is just for the people to make more. You don't even have a fair-enough minded thought process to give the school a chance for being new. You assume it is for making money, ergo if they must keep their tuition the same every year or they are just evil money-grubbers. Get real, all these people make way too much money, in a NPO or FP school...

 

[KDT]

+1 with SBB

 

[Slack3r]

SBB, if you want to defend RVU, go right ahead nobody attacked them; just pointed out the financial risk of attending a school that keeps raising their tuition.

But don't make up S**T just to try and make a point.

RVU tuition from 08/09 to 11/12 went up $9,184 or 26.8%
For the same time period Univ of MN Medical school when up $1,519 or 14%.

FYI, 10% increases each of those 4 years (not to mention the 10yrs you claimed) would have been 46% over 4 years.

The fact is RVU may be an excellent school, but they are a business and the decision to set tuition low and then raise dramatically shows they are in it for the money. There is nothing wrong with making money, their investors demand it, as would I if I owned it. But don't try to defend their decision to make money, that is why RVU exists.

Just because a school isn't explicitly for-profit doesn't mean they too aren't "in it for the money" (btw this phrase makes you sound like an idiot).

Temple's OOS tuition is $54k per year, not to mention CoL in Philly.
Tufts' is $52k.
Tulane's is $50k.
GWU's is $49k.

The list goes on and on. Are these schools charging upwards of $50,000 per year out of the goodness of their hearts?

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Just because a school isn't explicitly for-profit doesn't mean they too aren't "in it for the money" (btw this phrase makes you sound like an idiot).

Temple's OOS tuition is $54k per year, not to mention CoL in Philly.
Tufts' is $52k.
Tulane's is $50k.
GWU's is $49k.

The list goes on and on. Are these schools charging upwards of $50,000 per year out of the goodness of their hearts?

Except a lot of that tuition goes to top notch research institutes, their own teaching hospitals, and a bunch of other things even beyond facilities, such as major connections. As such their cost can be rationalized. What does RVU offer its students? A free standing university with a for-profit status and almost no explicit evidence that their students will be able to place in their first choice residency ( What are the possibilities that a lot of residency directors will be completely against their students?) or any insurance ( New MD schools almost always give their first class a full ride).

 

[fluffy0]

Except a lot of that tuition goes to top notch research institutes, their own teaching hospitals, and a bunch of other things even beyond facilities, such as major connections. As such their cost can be rationalized. What does RVU offer its students? A free standing university with a for-profit status and almost no explicit evidence that their students will be able to place in their first choice residency ( What are the possibilities that a lot of residency directors will be completely against their students?) or any insurance ( New MD schools almost always give their first class a full ride).

+1 with serenade.

RVU is just too big of a risk to spend money on, at least until we see them actually match somewhere. There are plenty of old school doctors running residency programs who, if they don't know about RVU, are bound to look into it when they see an RVU student's application come across their desk and immediately toss it aside, at least in the MD world. I predict that RVU grads will be filling a lot of the unfilled undesirable AOA residency spots.

 

[DocEspana]

TLDR: Did I miss anything or does this mostly sum it up?

costs go up everywhere. Perhaps faster at for-profit schools, perhaps not. But they're going to go up everywhere. Seeing a hobgoblin here is more bias than reality unless there is some predatory tuition hikes that im missing.

 

[patel2]

Except a lot of that tuition goes to top notch research institutes, their own teaching hospitals, and a bunch of other things even beyond facilities, such as major connections. As such their cost can be rationalized. What does RVU offer its students? A free standing university with a for-profit status and almost no explicit evidence that their students will be able to place in their first choice residency ( What are the possibilities that a lot of residency directors will be completely against their students?) or any insurance ( New MD schools almost always give their first class a full ride).

it gives students a chance to attend med school in the united states that would have otherwise not been able too. I highly doubt many RVU students had multiple acceptances, and if they did, then they are pretty dumb to pick such a risky 'for profit' school over an established program. The choice was RVU or a one way ticket to grenada. SO really the school has all the leverage, not the students.

Inaugural MD schools tend to still have fairly high stats, 3.6/30+, and many students likely either have multiple allo acceptances or DO schools to fallback on if they applied. The scholarship is one way to entice them to attending the new, less established school.

Sure, RVU has no proven track record, but I'll bet their first year match list beats SGU or AUC. Regardless of all its flaws, most students at this school are better off than they would be had RVU not existed. I also see no reason RVU shouldn't exploit the gov't subsidized loans like the rest of the non-profits...if you were running a school, wouldn't you raise tuition and fees every year when it's guaranteed that the gov't will foot the bill?

 

[Slack3r]

There are plenty of old school doctors running residency programs who, if they don't know about RVU, are bound to look into it when they see an RVU student's application come across their desk and immediately toss it aside, at least in the MD world.

No they won't. A school's profit status has nothing to do with the caliber of students. I doubt students at RVU would be any worse off in the MD world than any other new osteopathic school (ATSU-Mesa or LECOM-Seton Hall, etc.). Stop talking out of your ass.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

No they won't. A school's profit status has nothing to do with the caliber of students. I doubt students at RVU would be any worse off in the MD world than any other new osteopathic school (ATSU-Mesa or LECOM-Seton Hall, etc.). Stop talking out of your ass.

We will see...

 

[fluffy0]

No they won't. A school's profit status has nothing to do with the caliber of students. I doubt students at RVU would be any worse off in the MD world than any other new osteopathic school (ATSU-Mesa or LECOM-Seton Hall, etc.). Stop talking out of your ass.

Both of those schools are branch campus's of two of the most well know osteopathic schools...so most assumptions will be made off of that....But think of it like this...if you're a graduate of University of Phoenix (I know they probably don't offer pre med requisites...but still) and apply to Medical School...and you have a 4.0...will a medical school interview and accept you? Now...if this same stigma that is attached to pretty much every for profit institution carries over to Rocky Vista, will you get chosen for a residency over someone who comes from a more credible institution...

 

[Slack3r]

Both of those schools are branch campus's of two of the most well know osteopathic schools...so most assumptions will be made off of that....But think of it like this...if you're a graduate of University of Phoenix (I know they probably don't offer pre med requisites...but still) and apply to Medical School...and you have a 4.0...will a medical school interview and accept you? Now...if this same stigma that is attached to pretty much every for profit institution carries over to Rocky Vista, will you get chosen for a residency over someone who comes from a more credible institution...

Then change the aforementioned to William Carey U or Lincoln Memorial. Point still stands. You're still making assumptions on what you *think* PDs will think.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Then change the aforementioned to William Carey U or Lincoln Memorial. Point still stands. You're still making assumptions on what you *think* PDs will think.

LMU-DCOM is actually one of the only successful new DO schools I would attend. It has a undergraduate school backing it up, it has tip top facilities and a great faculty. WCU is pretty much a walmart DO school.
But, lets just wait and see what happens with the first graduating class.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

So it's ok to fry RVU before they graduate a class, but not WCU?? Clearly you've stated that all graduates of RVU will not be considered on their own merits, ONLY on the merits of the school. Residency directors won't consider USMLE or COMLEX scores, only where you graduated... uuuhhhhuhhh right.... if that were the case, then there would be NO point in going into a DO school and trying to get into an MD residency at all because the MD programs would clearly favor MD schools...

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

SBB, I just called WCU a walmart DO school. What's with your selective processing?

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

That you didn't say that those students wouldn't be able to get residency slots, just RVU... You state clearly you wouldn't go to either, fine, but it seems only the RVU students will fill the lowest level residency slots, and basically never find jobs because they went to RVU...

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

That you didn't say that those students wouldn't be able to get residency slots, just RVU... You state clearly you wouldn't go to either, fine, but it seems only the RVU students will fill the lowest level residency slots, and basically never find jobs because they went to RVU...

Sigh, I said that we will see whether this is something to worry about or not. I personally think that it might potentially be a problem, and as I wouldn't go to RVU, but I personally wouldn't go to WCU either. Either way I don't feel like paying bucks to go to a two-bit university, nor do I want to go to a university which might inhibit my ability to place into my first choice.

 

[Prncssbuttercup]

And I think that your test scores and your goals will be what determine your placement. I really don't see it as being an issue of which school you attend.