Millions of students at University of California (UC) and California State University (CSU) campuses will be affected this fall by California's public higher education system's decision to scale back programs and, at the same time, increase tuition.

Because of California's $38.2 billion budgetary shortfall, more than $700 million will be cut from the budgets of public institutions of higher education in the state. As a result, fees are projected to rise dramatically at these schools, making the price of getting a degree from a California college more expensive than ever before.

The new price tag for tuition at UC for the 2003/4 academic year is now projected at $4,984 ($5,219 for graduate students); at CSU campuses, it is $2,046 for undergraduates and $2,256 for graduate students.

At the same time, money for programs at UC and CSU that prepare and recruit underserved students in high school will be cut. In fact, UC's outreach budget will be reduced by half (down to $33.3 million).

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