CASTLETON, Vt. — What’s in a name? For colleges looking to gain prestige along with more students and precious out-of-state tuition dollars, plenty.
Faced with declining enrollment, reduced public funding or both, some state colleges and universities are adding graduate programs and changing their names to attract more students and compete with private institutions.
Vermont’s Castleton State College has added five graduate programs in the past five years and hopes to become Castleton University to reflect what it has become and to attract more out-of-state and foreign students, who pay more in out-of-state tuition rates and who could help offset budget concerns.
“We need to be somewhat entrepreneurial in other areas of where we can generate revenue, and certainly graduate programs are one of those areas where we can experience growth,” school spokesman Jeffrey Weld said.
It’s normal for colleges to rename themselves as they grow and change. But Thomas Harnisch, director of state relations and policy analysis for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, is seeing more of it, as community colleges become state colleges and state colleges become universities based on what they now offer students.
“To some, this represents the natural growth and evolution of campuses in response to state needs, but to others this just represents old-fashioned mission creep,” he said.
The Richard Stockton State College of New Jersey became Stockton University this year in order to reflect its growth in graduate programs. Luring more out-of-state students is an added benefit, spokeswoman Maryjane Briant said.
