THOUSAND OAKS, CA. - California Lutheran University students receiving a scholarship that normally matches the cost of attending University of California colleges will this year pay less than they would have paid to attend a UC school.

CLU President Chris Kimball decided this week that he didn’t want the state system’s latest tuition hike to be passed along to the 170 new and continuing students in the CLU Guarantee Scholarship: Private Education, Public Price program for the 2011-2012 year. The university will maintain the scholarship value that was set in spring so participating students aren’t faced with a cost increase of $1,120 just weeks before classes start.

The popular program allows incoming students who are also admitted to one of five UC schools to attend CLU for the cost of attending the public university. The value of the CLU Guarantee Scholarship is the difference in the tuition, books and living expenses for full-time residential students attending CLU and the average price of attending the UC colleges. Based on UC tuition figures set in spring, the value of the CLU scholarship for the 2011-2012 year will be $19,431.

On July 14, the UC regents raised tuition 9.6 percent for the fall. This could have triggered a cost increase for qualifying CLU students, reducing the value of the scholarship to $18,311 for the coming year.

CLU launched the scholarship in 2008, garnering national media attention and leading universities in other states to adopt similar programs. The program has expanded through the years and is now open to both freshmen and transfer students who are admitted to UC San Diego, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis or UC Berkeley.

The number of students participating has increased rapidly each year, with a 65 percent jump in the number of recipients from last year to this year. The scholarships awarded for the 2011-2012 year total about $3.3 million.

The program is open to all students applying for the traditional undergraduate program and the Adult Degree Evening Program. It has no income or residency requirements. Students can also receive federal, state and institutional aid based on need to further reduce the cost.

If students make satisfactory academic progress and meet GPA requirements, they can renew the scholarship each year. The amount increases if the cost of attendance goes up.

Of the students receiving the CLU Guarantee Scholarship last year, 46 percent were first-generation college students and 40 percent identified themselves as Latino. Retention rates among recipients are extremely high, with 92 percent of recipients still enrolled at CLU last year. In spring, six students became the first scholarship recipients to graduate from CLU.

For more information, visit http://www.callutheran.edu/cluguarantee or contact the Office of Undergraduate Admission at (877) 258-3678 or admissions@callutheran.edu.