UT Dallas Beefs Up Comet Connection Partnerships

Comet Connection, an innovative program designed to help transfer students, has added 12 Texas community colleges to its burgeoning portfolio, bringing the total number of participants across the state to 29. 

Created to help UT Dallas students and their families budget for college, Comet Connection guarantees four years of fixed tuition and fees and other enrollment benefits.  Participating students can realize thousands of dollars in savings over their college careers. 

The new Comet Connection partners are: Cisco Junior College, College of the Mainland, Galveston College, Howard College, Lee College, Midland College, Navarro College, Northeast Texas Community College, South Plains College, Texarkana College, Vernon College and Western Texas College.

UT Dallas is among only a handful of universities to offer all new students guaranteed tuition.  Through Comet Connection, students who enroll at participating two-year schools in the 2007-08 academic year can lock in the same fall 2007 rate that the University will offer its incoming freshmen.

For example, a student who locks in the fall 2007 rate is eligible to pay no more than that amount through 2011. 

The guarantee also applies to graduate students, including those who complete undergraduate work at UT Dallas and continue in a graduate program.  A community college student who locks in the 2007 tuition rate can begin at UT Dallas in fall 2008, graduate in spring 2010 and use the remaining time in the four-year guarantee to enter graduate school at UT Dallas under the same 2007 graduate tuition rates.

Additionally, under the Guaranteed Tuition Plan, in-state students are not charged for credit hours in excess of 15 per semester.  For example, those taking 18 hours of classes pay the same cost as 15 hours.

To capture the most tuition savings, students are encouraged to sign the Comet Connection agreement as early as their first semester at community college.  After completing 30 credit hours, they can apply for admission to UT Dallas and wait up to a year to enroll.

Other benefits available to Comet Connection participants beyond fixed tuition and fees include:

• Comet Connection student ID card.
• Comet Connection student rate to athletic, cultural and social events on the UT Dallas campus.
• Access to Pre-Health and Pre-Law Resource Center and sponsored activities.
• Access to UT Dallas libraries through the TexShare program, and use of the public terminal in the McDermott Library.
• One-on-one access to UT Dallas academic advisers.
• Access to Enrollment Services events.

Plans to add institutions are under way.  Current Comet Connection partners are:  Austin Community College, Central Texas College, Collin County Community College District, Dallas County Community College District, Grayson County College, Hill College, Kilgore College, McLennan Community College, North Central Texas College, North Harris Montgomery Community College District, Paris Junior College, San Jacinto College District, Tarrant County College District, Temple College, Trinity Valley Community College, Tyler Junior College and Weatherford College.

For more information about Comet Connection, call 972-883-2270 or visit www.utdallas.edu/connect.

About UT Dallas

The University of Texas at Dallas, located at the convergence of Richardson, Plano and Dallas in the heart of the complex of major multinational technology corporations known as the Telecom Corridor, enrolls more than 14,500 students.  The school’s freshman class traditionally stands at the forefront of Texas state universities in terms of average SAT scores.  The University offers a broad assortment of bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs.  For additional information about UT Dallas, please visit the University’s Web site at www.utdallas.edu.