DSU to offer reduced tuition for active military
January 11, 2018
MADISON, S.D., January 12, 2018 – Active military members will soon receive a price break on tuition for online undergraduate classes at Dakota State University.
Beginning officially for summer 2018, active duty service members, National Guard and Reservists will pay $250/credit hour instead of the current $335/credit hour. Also, any online delivery fees will not apply to these students. The South Dakota Board of Regents approved this new program at their December 2017 meeting.
“Some of the nation’s best and brightest minds have accepted the call to duty to serve in the armed forces,” said Dr. José-Marie Griffiths, president of Dakota State University. “As they transition out of the military, a college degree, in conjunction with their military experience, can make them valuable employees in the civilian sector,” she continued.
“Online education courses provide these service members with the opportunity to pursue a college degree while they are in the military,” said Austin Slaughter, veteran affairs coordinator at Dakota State University said, “and this new rate will help eliminate the out-of-pocket cost for these students.”
James B. May is one such student. He has spent 24 years with the U.S. Navy, and is currently based in Charleston, S.C. as an MMACS(SS) at a nuclear power training unit. With plans to transition to civilian life in a few years, “it will be more important than ever to focus on financial stability for my family,” said May. “Having affordable tuition will play a big part in planning for the future.”
After completing his double major in computer science and cyber operations and minor in computer forensics, May plans to continue serving his country by joining the National Security Agency (NSA). “DSU's cyber operations program will help me achieve that milestone.”
Nick Camp, an Army specialist based at Fort Gordon, Georgia, said the courses’ affordability will keep his student loans at a manageable rate, minimizing the need to depend on subsidized loans. A DSU cyber operations major, Camp has some hands-on cyber experience with the Army, but “DSU is giving me the credentials to back my experience within the field.”
“My long-term career goals are to continue in the cyber operations role until I have completed my Army career, then move on to a role consulting with a company such as Foundstone.” Foundstone is a computer security company within cyber company McAfee Professional Services.
DSU’s technology programs are nationally recognized by the NSA, the Department of Homeland Security, the National Cryptologic School, and branches of the military. This tuition rate will “allow DSU to develop an even stronger partnership with the Department of Defense entities as these service members graduate with DSU degrees in cyber operations, computer science, network and security administration and information systems,” said Slaughter, who is a member of the South Dakota Army National Guard.
“This online active military rate will make DSU a competitive option,” Slaughter stated, and “will easily make us one of the best schools for military students. “
DSU has been designated as a Military Friendly School since 2012, and the “Military Times” recently named Dakota State as one of the best colleges in the nation for military members or veterans.
For more details on the reduced tuition rate, military members may call Slaughter at 1-888-378-9988, or dsu.edu/admissions/veteran-benefits.