The UA will receive nearly twice as much of an increase in financial aid as Arizona State University during the next fiscal year.

From fiscal year 2011 to 2012, ASU is projected to receive a $5.9 million increase in financial aid, and UA financial aid for those years is projected to increase by $10 million. The Arizona Board of Regents delineates the amount awarded from year to year.

Financial aid awards include academic scholarships, money set aside from the regents and other awards, which encompass categories such as waivers for children and spouses of slain Arizona peace officers, according to the Arizona Board of Regents 2011 financial aid report.

John Nametz, the director of student financial aid at the UA, said that the university is “”very, very aggressive”” in fighting for financial aid. An example of this, he said, is in 2009 and 2010 when the UA was the only university to access federal money allowing colleges to give students an additional term of the Pell Grant, called “”year-round pell.””

He explained that there are a variety of factors that determine how much financial aid a university is given, such as what programs an institution has to attract students who are eligible for need-based aid and private donors who provide scholarships.

The UA’s jump is in part because of a 4.5 percent increase in total financial aid from 2011 to 2012, according to the report. The increase is due to factors such as regents-approved tuition increases and scholarship increases due to increases in tuition.  

Of the three in-state universities, the ASU student body comprised approximately 52 percent of the total amount of enrolled Arizona students during fall 2010 and is projected to have about 53 percent by 2016. The UA had about 29 percent of the students enrolled during fall 2010 and is projected to have about 27 percent by 2016.

Elma Delic, the Arizona Students’ Association board chair, said ASA applauds the commitment that the three universities, especially the UA, have shown toward institutional financial aid. She added that ASA identified financial aid as a top priority because as the cost of university attendance increases, students will need a state-based financial aid program that will provide more access and affordability across the board.