State Higher Education Leaders Announce New Commonwealth Commitment Plan to Increase Affordability, Drive Degree Completion

Governor Charlie Baker and Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito joined public higher education leaders on April 21 to announce the Commonwealth Commitment, an innovative college affordability and completion plan to help more students achieve the dream of a college degree.

The Commonwealth Commitment commits every public campus to providing 10 percent rebates at the end of each successfully completed semester to qualifying undergraduate students, in addition to the standard MassTransfer tuition waiver received upon entering a four-year institution from a Community College. Students who meet the program requirements will, depending on the transfer pathway they choose, be able to realize an average savings of $5,090 off the cost of a baccalaureate degree.

This plan is the first agreement of its kind in the nation and was signed by the presidents at the University of Massachusetts, Worcester State University and Middlesex Community College, representing the three segments of the public higher education system.

“This program was designed to decrease the cost of a college degree and accelerate on-time completion for students across the Commonwealth, creating more opportunities and helping more people get into the workforce with the skills they need,” said Gov. Charlie Baker. “The Commonwealth Commitment will make it even easier for students to go to school full-time and begin their careers with less debt and we are pleased that our higher education officials have worked collaboratively to make this program a reality.”

“The Commonwealth Commitment is a win-win for students, employers, and our public higher education campuses,” said Lt. Gov. Karyn Polito. “Our hope is that through programs like this not only will students get the benefit of a lower cost degree, but also be able to fill more of the high-demand job of the future, including in STEM.”

The agreement emerged from the many $30,000-degree initiatives that colleges adopted throughout the region. Fitchburg State University, Worcester State University, Mount Wachusett Community College and Quinsigamond Community College adopted the initiatives last year.

As part of the Commonwealth Commitment's goal to increase cost savings and predictability, tuition and mandatory fees will be frozen for program participants as of the date they enter the program. Students will begin their studies at one of the state's 15 community colleges, enrolling in one of 24 Commonwealth Commitment/ Mass Transfer Pathways programs that will roll out in fall 2016 (14 programs) and fall 2017 (10 additional programs). They must attend full-time, and must maintain a cumulative GPA of 3.0. After earning an associate's degree in two and a half years or less, students will transfer to a state university or UMass campus to earn a baccalaureate degree.

“The signing of this agreement represents a new day for our state system of public colleges and universities,” said Carlos E. Santiago, Commissioner of Higher Education. “It was not easy or simple to hammer out an agreement among 28 undergraduate institutions with different missions and programs, but I was extremely proud to see how presidents, provosts, faculty and staff worked together with a sense of common purpose to get this done.”

At the end of every successfully completed semester, students will earn a 10 percent rebate on tuition and fees, payable in the form of a check, or may opt to receive a voucher to use for books or other education-related expenses. The program does not discount room and board, although students may choose to use their savings or other resources to offset some of those costs.

Further information is available at www.QCC.edu/MAComCom