The rising cost of college tuition has caused havoc in many lives in recent years, and even discouraged some from entering higher education.

Wayne State University has new programs to help combat at least some of those escalating costs and encourage more first-generation students to apply for admission.

Under the WSU Generation Next fee, the school will waive the application fee for all first-generation students – those who would be the first in their family to attend college.

The Generation Next fee waiver follows the 2017 launch of the Wayne Access Award, which helps eligible incoming freshmen with the most unmet need cover the cost of tuition and fees. The need-based award is renewable for up to four years and covers up to the full cost of tuition and fees in combination with federal, state and other institutional aid.

The university has extended a Wayne Access Award to more than 800 students for the 2017-18 academic year.

“At Wayne State, we want to inspire the next generation of students to reach their highest potential, so we’re working to remove the barriers to access,” says Provost Keith Whitfield. “We’re proud of our rich history as an institution that provides access to higher education for low-income and first-generation students.”

It currently costs $25 to apply to the undergraduate program at WSU.  The plan to get rid of that fee for first generation learners was the work of Office of the Provost and the Office of Undergraduate Admissions.

There were 19,000 freshman admitted to WSU for the 2017-18 school year, of those, 36 percent were first-generation students.

“Wayne State has always been a university of excellence and of opportunity,” Whitfield says. “We’re proud to offer both the Generation Next fee waiver and the Wayne Access Award to make the dream of achieving a college degree accessible to more students.”

For additional information, contact the Student Service Center at 313-577-2100 or email admissions@wayne.edu.

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