Dec. 14, 2022

Students from Illinois and Wisconsin can begin paying in-state rates for tuition in South Dakota with the 2023 academic year.

It’s tied to an expansion of the South Dakota Advantage rate, which already is offered to students from Colorado, Iowa, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota and Wyoming.

The move by the South Dakota Board of Regents followed an analysis by education company EAB to study price sensitivity and enrollment patterns. Upon reviewing the study, university representatives thought there was an opportunity to adjust special rates and increase the prospective student pipeline.

“We are always looking for opportunities to grow our enrollment and bring more people into South Dakota,” Brian Maher, executive director of the South Dakota Board of Regents, said in a statement. “By increasing our regional reach and offering a competitive tuition rate, we’re optimistic that our state will appeal to those students.”

The two new states were identified as potential target markets because of their proximity to South Dakota and the level of demand for higher education.

South Dakota Advantage and Child of Alumni rates also have been expanded to graduate programs at South Dakota public universities. To receive in-state graduate tuition rates, a student must have completed an undergraduate degree at a South Dakota public university or be a child of alumni.

Findings have shown that approximately 30 percent of nonresident students remain in the state after graduation, the Board of Regents said in the statement.

“This educated workforce is critical to our state, filling growing high-tech jobs, meeting the demands in health fields and keeping entrepreneurs in South Dakota,” it said.