Cutting Degree Programs to Save Money

Budgets have always been a sore point for public colleges and universities. State-funded institutions, they rely on tax dollars and lean government accountability to fund programs. When a state cannot afford to fund a school completely, or when the school has exhausted its budget, degree programs and student services suffer. The University of Missouri knows all about this. Officials there say the school has dropped 16 degree programs following a state-mandated review of programs with low numbers of graduates.

The mandated review comes as the state seeks to save money and widen its distribution to public universities and colleges. The state ordered all public institutions to review programs that have an average of fewer than 10 bachelor's, five master's and three doctoral graduates each year. Most of the dropped programs will be merged with other academic areas; few have been cut completely.

While the cost-saving drops are likely to have an impact on the budget, officials at the University of Missouri say it will take years for some of the changes to take affect. The university is mindful that these amendments to degree programs will have a negative, or at the least, disrupting impact on current students. "Some of these degrees are not going to go away for a while because there are people in the pipeline," a dean at the school said.

With the University of Missouri's bold move to salvage the budget, we're left to wonder if other schools across the nation will follow suit. Will we begin to see degree programs at other universities cut to save state-funded institutions?

Photo Credit: Jeff Kopp