Full-time resident undergraduate students paid a total of $5,390.75 before meal plans, housing or insurance this semester, according to UB’s website.
UB’s broad-based fees — including the Comprehensive Fee and the Academic Excellence and Success Fee — and the Student Association’s recently renewed student activity fee make up more than a third of that cost, totaling $1,855.75.
The Comprehensive Fee consists of a collection of charges that support university services, including fees for athletics, campus life, career services and technology. The Academic Excellence and Success Fee supports educational initiatives for UB students.
UB performs a broad-based fee consultation process every year following a SUNY policy, where the university solicits student feedback on fee proposals through a survey. Just 59 people responded to the survey issued during the 2022-23 broad-based fee consultation process.
The broad-based fee did not change for the 2023-24 academic year after “extensive consultation with SUNY System Administration,” Provost and Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs A. Scott Weber and Vice President for Student Life Brian Hamluk wrote in a statement.
The following is a breakdown of the services funded by broad-based fees, from highest to lowest:
Technology Fee — $430
Web access to services such as HUB and Brightspace, internet access and UBIT are all covered under the technology fee. Students are able to access public workstations on North and South Campus, residential computing labs and printing support.
Athletics Fee — $265.75
The athletics fee provides students with free access to North and South Campus recreation facilities and events, student programming and promotions involved with Intercollegiate Athletics.
The money also goes towards funding athletic scholarship opportunities, grants and operating expenses for UB’s 16 varsity sports teams. UB’s website claims that other benefits include increased institutional exposure and student recruitment, increased diversity on campus and an increased sense of campus pride.
Academic Excellence and Success Fee — $262.50
This fee funds services that support “student success,” such as the UB’s Center for Excellence in Writing, upgraded classroom technologies and research and Ph.D. initiatives.
Transportation Fee — $242.25
The transportation fee services the UB Stampede, on-demand and mall/market shuttles, transportation trackers and UB Bikeshare, among others.
Health Service Fee — $219.50
Student Health Services, Counseling services, health promotion and accessibility resources are supported by the fee. Students can receive wellness coaching, nutrition consultations and learn harm reduction strategies, among other services.
College Fee — $137.50
The college fee provides funding to the University Police and provides additional support to university initiatives such as UB Finish in Four.
Campus Life Fee — $132.25
The campus life fee funds programs aimed to benefit students’ experience at UB. Initiatives include One World Cafe, orientation programs and Blackstone LaunchPad, as well as Student Engagement and the Intercultural and Diversity Center.
Student Activity Fee — $109
While not part of UB’s broad-based fees, this fee goes to the Student Association, which uses the funds for club budgets and university-wide events. The fee remains after 72.52% of voters agreed to pass it in a referendum last year and will continue until the 2024-25 school year.
Recreation Fee — $27
Recreation services and facilities such as pools, jogging tracks and locker rooms are made available for students with this fee. The money also goes toward student employment at gyms and for fitness classes.
The university notes that the charge does not fully cover all programming, such as intramural sports, which may require an additional fee.
Career Services Fee — $25
The fee funds UB’s Career Design Center, which offers students job-search support through Bullseye powered by Handshake, networking events and job fairs.
Students in the School of Management (SOM), law, medicine and dental medicine are not charged. SOM students are charged a separate fee for a career resource center exclusive to SOM students.
Transcript Fee — $5
The transcript fee allows students unlimited access to their official transcripts.
Jasmin Yeung is a features editor and can be reached at jasmin.yeung@ubspectrum.com
Photo: Ryan Hagen | UB Athletics
