CHENEY, Wash. — Eastern Washington University's welcome celebration kicked off in Cheney on Roos Field. It was a sea of red as incoming freshman piled into the stadium. Jens Larson, Associate Vice President of Enrollment Management, said the university expects this year to have a record-breaking number of students on campus since the pandemic.
A main reason more students are choosing EWU is because of affordability. The university still offers the lowest tuition rate for colleges in Washington state.
“It’s really great. This is super affordable. I feel like we are getting the same, if not better education here than we would anywhere in Washington…it’s nice knowing that I’m going to leave here and not be in hole. So, that is super exciting," said Courtney Tapia, who is both an incoming freshman and is on the cheerleading team.
Tapia is on the biology track with plans to become a pediatric doctor. With many more school years ahead of her, EWU offers the best tuition for her circumstance.
The affordability factor has brought students from all corners of the earth to EWU's campus. In addition to more freshman on campus, Larson told KREM 2 the amount of transfer, dual credit and returning students has also increased.
"At Eastern more than half the graduates have no student debt when they leave, so that means they are entering the job force ready to go from day one, without student loan payments. Which is an amazing opportunity."
Larson noted that tuition did not go up faster than inflation, which provides more value for students looking to make EWU their campus.
Students will be arriving into Cheney and the Greater Spokane area for the remainder of the week. Classes start this Wednesday.