The Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education approved an average 5.7 percent increase to tuition and mandatory fees for its regional universities. Higher education officials cited record enrollments, increased operational costs and prior years of reduced state appropriations as contributing factors to tuition increases. In fact, East Central University will receive less than a 1 percent increase from state funding appropriations this year. In order to continue to offer ECU students more, a 5.8 percent increase in tuition and mandatory fees will be added. With the increase of $9.47 per hour, the cost for undergraduate students will be $142.05 increase per semester, based on 15 enrolled credit hours. For graduate students, the increase is $11.62 per credit hour, based on 12 credit hours. This will be an approximate $139.44 per semester increase.