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KALAMAZOO, MI –

Western Michigan University students are anything but surprised that tuition and required fees are increasing by at least $376 this fall.

“I’m used to it,” said computer engineering senior Aaron Clark, who was studying at the Bernhard Center on Wednesday, after WMU Board of Trustees approved increasing tuition 3.91 percent for the 2012-13 academic year. “I don’t have any family contributions, so I rely entirely on financial aid, but there’s not much I can do about it.”

In-state freshmen and sophomore students will pay yearly tuition of $9,982, or $4,569 per semester, which is up from the $4,381 paid previously. Upperclassmen will pay a $5,048 flat rate, as opposed to $4,840 for 2011-12. Graduate students will pay $479.57 per credit hour, up from $459.80.

Yuya Yamada, of Japan, an international graduate student who will be studying economics this fall, said he’s not looking forward to paying $1,015 per credit hour, which is the new rate for non-resident graduate tuition, up from $973.87 last year.

“It’s too expensive,” said Yamada, 23. “My parents help me pay for tuition and I’m worried about them being able to pay for it. They’ll be upset.”

Differential tuition rates, imposed on Haworth College of Business and College of Fine Arts students last year, will also increase by approximately $30 for fine arts students and approximately $24 for upperclassmen business students.

The WMU board also approved increasing the price non-traditional students pay through Extended University Programs either online or at regional locations. Undergraduate courses offered at regional locations will now cost $378.66 per credit hour and graduate courses will cost $535.29 per credit hours.

The current $20-per-class technology fee will be maintained for both regular classes and online graduate-level classes, but tuition for undergraduate courses that are 100 percent online will be assessed tuition in accordance with the rate for on-campus freshman and sophomores, which is $316.03 per credit hour, plus a fee of $60 per credit hour.

WMU's tuition increase is among the largest in the state in terms of percentage, but WMU’s undergraduate tuition costs are ranked 10th among the 15 public universities in the state – below Central Michigan, Grand Valley State, Ferris State, Oakland University, and Wayne State – in terms of what students are paying in tuition, according to data released by WMU.

WMU senior Shanequa Hampton says the tuition and fee increases “suck” for students like her, who have to pay back loans. From 2010 to 2011, more than 60 percent of Western Michigan University undergraduate students received need-based financial aid.

“It’s a business and I don’t have to be here, but if you want to get along in this world, you've got to get an education,” said Hampton, who is studying psychology. “I don’t know how much debt I have, but I’ll be more worried when I get to graduate school.”

Hampton says most of her college tuition is paid for with federal loans.

“We do monitor closely the debt load for our students and we still remain one of the most modest in terms of the debt loan,” said WMU President John M. Dunn.

“We don’t have students walking out of here with $100,000 to $150,000 debt. Our average is much less than that – something like $16,000. I’d like that to be zero," Dunn said.

"When we do a tuition adjustment, we have to factor in what we’re trying to offer in terms of sustaining the high quality that we have here, making sure the students are getting all of the things that they need and what society is asking for, including recruiting employers.”

Total student debt in America now tops $1 trillion, with the majority – $864 billion – coming from federal loans. The remainder, $150 billion, comes from private loans, according to a recent report released by Education Department and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.

"We’ll see if it’s worth it after I graduate," said Hampton. "If I can get a job in my field and start my own practice it is. If not, it’s just an experience."

Contact Ursula Zerilli at uzerilli@mlive.com or 269-254-5295. Follow her on twitter.