Rutgers Charging Grad Students Almost $1,900 in Fees While Funding Identity Groups

Rutgers Charging Grad Students Almost $1,900 in Fees While Funding Identity Groups

So much of higher education is just a scam about money.

Campus Reform reports:

Rutgers charges grad students almost $1,900 in fees while funding identity-based affinity groups

Full-time graduate students at Rutgers University’s New Brunswick campus are required to pay $936 per semester in student fees, totaling $1,872 over two semesters, while the university promotes a network of identity-based graduate affinity groups.

Rutgers’ official tuition and fee schedule lists the mandatory “Student Fee” for full-time New Brunswick graduate students in addition to tuition, a $214.50-per-semester technology fee, and a $227-per-semester school fee.

The university’s Graduate School Handbook states that the Graduate Student Association represents graduate students “who pay fees,” funds “many of the programs, cultural events, and student journals” in New Brunswick, and controls the “allocation of student fees.”

Rutgers requires full-time students to pay a mandatory Student Fee that supports student-centered activities, including “student life” and “student government.” The university’s Office of Graduate Student Life operates within the Division of Student Affairs and administers nine identity-based affinity groups.

The university’s Graduate Student Life website lists groups for “African,” “BIPOC LGBTQIA2S+,” “Chinese,” “International,” “Latino/a/e/x,” “Multicultural,” “Neurodiverse,” and “Southeast Asian” students.

The affinity groups grew out of a “DEI Graduate Student Advisory Committee,” which worked to develop “projects and recommendations that contribute to an equitable, affirming, and inclusive graduate education experience.”

Rutgers now places the affinity groups within its broader Cultural Center Collaborative, which operates through Student Affairs.

The university describes the collaborative as dedicated to “creating a welcoming and holistic learning environment for all members of the community, inclusive of all identities and allies.”

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