CLU offers private education at public price

California Lutheran University is providing students with an opportunity to receive a private school education at a public school price through its new CLU Guarantee Scholarship: Private Education, Public Price program.

Incoming freshmen who are admitted to CLU and either University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) or University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB) for the 2008-2009 year can attend CLU for the cost of attending the public university. The savings on tuition, room and board likely will amount to more than $60,000 over four years.

CLU’s offer to match the cost of attending a publicly financed university is unique. Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota last year created a similar scholarship, but it is restricted to students from low- to middle-income families. The CLU Guarantee Scholarship program has no income requirements. Out-of-state and international students are also eligible.

With rising college costs, this program is designed to provide more students with the opportunity to receive a high-quality education and enjoy the small class sizes and personal attention from faculty that a small private university like CLU offers.

The scholarship amount will be the difference in the average cost between attending CLU and UCLA or UCSB for full-time residential students. The price of tuition, books and living expenses at CLU for the 2007-2008 year is $39,355. The average cost of attending UCLA or UCSB for the 2007-2008 year is $24,522. Based on these figures, the scholarship would be $14,833. The 2008-2009 CLU Guarantee Scholarship amount will be announced in spring after the universities have updated their costs.

If students maintain a 3.0 grade point average and make satisfactory academic progress, they can renew the scholarship for all four years at the university. The scholarship amount will increase every year that the cost of attendance goes up.

Students can also receive institutional, state and federal aid based on need to further reduce their cost.

For more information, visit http://www.callutheran.edu/cluguarantee or contact coordinator Rebecca Keenan at rkeenan@callutheran.edu or (805) 493-3139.