E. Mohamed may put his plans to transfer to a private school on hold if the proposed tuition decrease for international students becomes a reality.

Mohamed, a junior in aviation management from Sudan, said he is paying all of his tuition expenses out-of-pocket, and a tuition decrease would be a incentive to stay at SIUC.

It’s definitely cool, he said. I’m not on a scholarship, and it’s expensive to pay out-of-pocket.

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I had a friend that was about to join SIU, but because of tuition, he decided to switch over (to another school).

The possibility of decreasing tuition for international students, from three times that of in-state tuition to two times the in-state tuition, was discussed at Thursday’s Board of Trustee’s meeting.

If the plan is passed, the decrease will go into effect by 1999. The board will vote on the proposal at its February meeting.

Wei Wang, a doctoral student in finance from Beijing, said that although her assistantship pays for her tuition, the lowered tuition will help to increase enrollment for international students.

I’m sure it would make our school more competitive with other schools, she said. If the tuition is very high, students would choose other universities, but if the tuition is cheaper, then they would want to come.

Wang said that since she began SIUC in the fall 94, her tuition has increased by thousands of dollars.

The tuition is higher than other schools, she said. When I applied for this school, I think it was around $14,000 a year to cover books, tuition, fees and everything.

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Now you have to show $17,000, which is very high. To be more competitive, it should be lower.

Chin-Jen Wang, a graduate student in radio and television from Taiwan, said the possibility of lower tuition is good because he can take more classes.

I’d like to register for more classes, but tuition is high, he said. Everybody wants lower tuition.

Nayef Al-Haddad, a freshman in electrical engineering from Kuwait, said that although lowered tuition for international students is a good, he is still disappointed.

I feel disappointed because it starts in the fall of 1999, and it should be the fall of 1998, he said. Even with the proposal, I think the tuition is high.

Al-Haddad said even though he is on a scholarship, he can empathize with students who have to pay the high tuition.

I feel what others feel about the tuition, he said. Especially people that are on their own.