Fort Hays State University Degrees & Programs
Fort Hays State University appears in our ranking of the 20 Best Online Schools for Marketing.
Fort Hays State University in Kansas offers its students many ways to earn their degrees with programs available on campus in traditional degree programs, or online, as well as options for high school pre-enrollment, transfer student enrollment, and college re-entry. Some of the most popular majors at the university include business, education, liberal arts, humanities, social sciences, and psychology.
More than 48 percent of the university’s classes are offered with fewer than 20 students in attendance, and the overall student-faculty ratio is 14:1. More than 70 percent of first-year students return to the university for their second year of study. Of the university’s 15,000 students, around 6,800 of those students attend classes online.
There is a wide array of online degree programs available where students can attend the university’s Virtual College and earn their degrees without ever setting foot on campus. In fact, the college has almost 200 certificate programs and online degree programs available with degrees from the associate’s level to the doctoral level.
Topics available for study include agricultural business, early childhood education, international business, medical diagnostic imaging, marketing, finance, and environmental geosciences. Students can also earn undergraduate degrees in tourism and hospitality management, political sciences, modern languages, and nursing via online classes.
Graduate degrees online include those in counseling, education, and business. Students may specialize in any one of several concentrations while earning the Master of Business Administration. Some of the specializations include those in marketing, leadership studies, information assurance, finance, corporate communication, and digital marketing.
A sampling of certificates available online includes the Building a Career in a Nonprofit Corporation Certificate, the Public Administration Certificate, the Certificate in Case Management, and the Certificate in General Philosophy. Some of the certificates offered by the university are available on campus, as well as online, so students have their choice of enrollment options.
High school students interested in dual enrollment can qualify to take classes early under the Tiger Pre-Enrollment program or the Tiger Transfer Pre-Enrollment program, but they must already have a high school diploma to enroll. The Tiger Pre-Enrollment program is part of the official first-year experience for students at Fort Hays State University.
About Fort Hays State University
Fort Hays State University is part of the state university system in the State of Kansas. The university is guided by a board of regents and has around 15,000 students enrolled for classes on campus and online, as well as in Chinese programs. The rural campus covers 200 acres in Hays, Kansas, and the university’s official colors are gold and black.
The university was established in 1902 and was originally built on the site of a frontier outpost that closed in 1889. In 1904, the school began expanding its footprint with a new building that was closer to the community of Hays than the old frontier outpost. Students are nicknamed the Tigers, and they have a mascot named Victor E. Tiger. Sports are played in the Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association.
Fort Hays State University Accreditation Details
Fort Hays State University is regionally accredited by the Higher Learning Commission, which is the independent agency responsible for accrediting schools in Kansas and the surrounding states of the Midwest. The agency is recognized by the United States Secretary of Education. In addition to accreditation that covers the overall university, the institution also has many individual programs that are programmatically accredited by specialized agencies.
Organizations that have accredited programs at the university include the American Chemical Society, the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, and the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education. Other accreditations come from the Council on Social Work Education, the Association of Technology Management, and Applied Engineering, the National Association of Schools of Music, and the Joint Review Committee on Education in Radiologic Technology.
Fort Hays State University Application Requirements
Admission requirements for Fort Hays State University for Kansas residents include completing the state’s recommended high school curriculum, having an overall GPA of 2.0, and achieving minimum test scores for the ACT or SAT. Students must obtain a 21 on the ACT or a 980 on the SAT or have a rank in the top one-third of their high school graduating class.
Non-residents must complete the university’s recommended high school curriculum with a GPA of at least 2.5 on a 4.0 scale. Students who were homeschooled or who earned a GED are welcome to apply but must also submit standardized test scores. Students who want to enter the university as transfer students must have credits earned at an accredited institution of higher learning.
Tuition and Financial Aid
The cost for tuition at Fort Hays State University for residents of Kansas is $5,274.00, and the cost for non-residents is $15,432.90. Students from states that border Kansas pay a reduced non-resident rate of $7,272.90. Books and supplies are estimated to cost $606.00, and room & board is charged at $8,210.00. Students pay $175.80 per credit if they’re residents, $511.43 per credit if they’re non-residents, and $242.43 if they’re from contiguous states.
For graduate students, the in-state rate is $241.71 per credit, the non-resident rate is $609.77 per credit, and the on-campus rate is $341.29 per credit. The Doctor of Nursing Practice and Master of Business Administration degrees are $400.00 per credit. The university assumes that most graduate students will enroll in nine credits each semester if they attend Fort Hays State University on a full-time basis.
Students can visit or call the Financial Assistance Office if they have questions about financial aid at Fort Hays State University. Applicants who submit a FAFSA form may qualify for part of the $59 million in loans, scholarships, and grants offered to students each year at the university. After submitting a FAFSA form, students will receive word on their eligibility for financial and, as well as whether they will need to submit any additional documentation.
Students may receive aid as part of military education benefits or student employment opportunities along with standard loans, scholarships, and grants. Students interested in receiving scholarship aid through the university should try to meet the priority deadline of November 15 or the final deadline of February 15. Some of the available scholarships at Fort Hays State University include the Floyd Bedker Scholarship, the Eva Campbell Davis Scholarship, and the Arthur Courtney Scholarship.