WUE: A Price Point Worth Paying Attention To!

Are you a resident of California, or another state west of Montana? There are a group of schools that are well priced for California students that many people aren’t aware of! Take a look at WUE (pronounced “woo-eee”) schools and apply to a few campuses – you might just end up with an exceptionally good college education and experience that competes price-wise with a public education in California!

Schools vary in their requirements and not all public universities are a part of WUE, but at those schools that do participate, students can pay tuition at 1-1/2 times the cost of in-state tuition—generally that means a discount of about $10,000 per year! And that often brings the price down to the University of California or even a Cal State University pricetag here in California.

At some campuses, students must hit a minimum GPA and SAT/ACT test score, but for other schools, ALL qualified candidates get the WUE discount as long as they reside in a western state.

Another factor can be your major—some schools only give the WUE discount to students who declare specific majors, so it’s important to check out the requirements at each school.

There are many great schools in the WUE consortium, but the following are some of our favorites:

  • Southern Oregon University
  • Western Washington University
  • Colorado State University
  • Boise State University
  • University of Montana, Billings
  • University of New Mexico
  • Northern Arizona University
  • University of Hawaii, Hilo
  • University of Nevada, Reno

Check out the WUE website to find out about these and many more WUE participating schools! (https://www.wiche.edu/wue)

We believe in a “balanced” college list, so applying to at least one WUE school makes sense for most students! Contact us if you want to hear about any specific schools or opportunities. We are big fans of the WUE group!