Students enrolled in Linn-Benton Community College’s career and technical education and lab-based programs often pay significantly more per credit than peers in transfer-focused degree pathways, a cost structure some faculty say is becoming increasingly difficult for students to navigate as total program costs continue to rise.
At the center of the debate is differential tuition, a 21% surcharge applied to many CTE and lab-heavy courses.
The charge is meant to help account for the higher cost of running hands-on programs that require specialized facilities, equipment, and supplies. But faculty members in some high-cost programs say the model raises questions about affordability and transparency…