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MIU cuts costs in response to dip in computer science enrollment
FAIRFIELD – Maharishi International University has temporarily closed the Golden Dome Market and the bookstore in the Argiro Student Center in response to a sudden dip in revenue.
MIU President Dr. John Hagelin said the university has experienced tremendous growth in enrollment the past four years, nearly tripling the student body to its current level of 3,000. However, recent developments in modern technology have hurt enrollment specifically in MIU’s master’s in computer science program, its most lucrative. Enrollment in the program fell from 600 students at its peak to just 240 now, resulting in a drop of $4-5 million in revenue each of the last two school years.
“That program pays our bills,” Hagelin said. “The tuition for that program is as much as five times more than the tuition a half-time distance education student here would pay for physiology or English. That was a big blow, and it came very suddenly.”
JOBS HARD TO FIND
Hagelin said computer science enrollment was hit hard by the artificial intelligence tools that debuted in November 2022, which made major technology companies think they could get by with fewer programmers. Artificial intelligence programs like ChatGPT are able to write code on their own. Microsoft, Apple, Google and others stopped hiring and even laid off workers, which made it difficult for recent computer science graduates to find jobs.
MIU’s master’s degree in computer science is unique in the educational field for offering a master’s degree for free at the outset, only to be repaid by the graduate when they get a job at a major company. This has made it a magnet for students from around the world, and most students in the program are international.
“For foreign students generally, they could not afford a U.S. education,” Hagelin said, “because the dollar is worth so much more than their currency. They want to come here to have a shot at the American dream. We have a 98.5 percent success rate for these graduates placing them at top companies.”
CUTTING COSTS
Hagelin said the university had no choice but to cut costs wherever it could. A few months ago, the university announced it would be closing the Golden Dome Market and the bookstore in Argiro, at least for the time being. Hagelin said surveys have gone out to students, faculty and supporters to see what goods and services they would like to see in those two spaces. He said neither the Golden Dome Market nor the bookstore were profitable.
“We’ve lined up cuts of about $5 million from a variety of areas,” Hagelin said. “Our computer science faculty has shrunk because their number of students has shrunk. People weren’t shopping at the bookstore because the merchandise was not cutting-edge. We’re restocking it, and it’s going to have really attractive gear, things students would want to wear.”
Hagelin added that there is less demand for physical books now that students can view their textbooks online. He said the problem with Golden Dome Market was that, though it had a huge inventory for a small store, it wasn’t selling enough items. He hopes it can be reorganized and reopen as something more like the Dome Café, a popular eatery on the building’s second floor.
“It’s going to be a lot more café and a lot less market,” Hagelin said.
The other change the university made was ending its contract with Aramark, which had been in charge of custodial, groundskeeping and building maintenance. Hagelin said the university will now perform those tasks in house, with his wife Kara Anastasio overseeing operations. He said the university has rehired about two-thirds of Aramark’s workers as university employees.
RIGHTING THE SHIP
Though enrollment in computer science has fallen, Hagelin said every other department at MIU is adding students. In fact, he thinks that the expansion in these other departments and the cost-cutting measures being implemented now will put the university back in the black by the beginning of next school year.
“We’re going to have to keep a careful eye on it, because we don’t have a big endowment,” Hagelin said. “Universities, by and large, live on their endowments. They provide a giant cushion. You can draw from them when you need to. We have a small endowment, but we do have about $100-$120 million in endowment pledges in the form of bequests. Probably within 10-15 years, we’ll have an endowment of $100-something million, and that will provide an extra $5 million per year in revenue. That would be game-changing for us.”
The university is eyeing some big projects on the horizon. It would like to build dormitories on the land now occupied by Reiff Grain and which was recently acquired by Vastu Partners LLC. Vastu Partners LLC is building townhomes east of the grain buildings, and plans to demolish the buildings later this summer. Hagelin said the university could build its next dormitory there, though it would need a fundraising campaign before making concrete plans.
“Construction post-COVID is very expensive,” Hagelin said. “Everything doubled [in price], and it didn’t go back down after the supply chains were restored.”
Hagelin said that donors are especially fond of donating to buildings, and that most universities fund new buildings through donations. He added that, because of the drop in computer science enrollment, the university doesn’t need a new dormitory as badly now, but he expects it will need one in the next few years.
Meanwhile, the university has renovated and is still renovating office space into dorm rooms at the Fairfield Business Park building on North Highway 1, the former home of Books Are Fun. Hagelin said these are “high level” rooms, and not just for students but also for out-of-town guests who come for retreats and conferences.
Other developments that Hagelin is excited about include the opening of the newly renovated outdoor pool at MIU, scheduled to open June 1, and new college sports. The university plans to field a tennis team and compete against other tennis teams in the Midwest. Hagelin said MIU wants to do the same with a soccer team and esports team.
Call Andy Hallman at 641-575-0135 or email him at andy.hallman@southeastiowaunion.com
