Daily WIldcat - August 29, 2011

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IN TODAY’S ISSUE SPORTS

NEWS

ARTS & LIFE

Catching up with former UA hoopster Budinger during lockout — 8

For those about to rush, we inform you — 2

Crude, lewd TV and why we love it — 8

DAILY WILDCAT

Monday, august , 

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SERVING THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA SINCE 1899

More units, extra cost for some By Eliza Molk DAILY WILDCAT

Overachievers, beware: You may be in for an unpleasant surprise when the bursar’s bill arrives. The Excess Units Surcharge, enacted in 2005 by the Arizona Legislature, charges a per-unit fee to undergraduates who have not yet earned their degree and have completed 145 units or more. The surcharge is per semester and differs for residents and nonresidents. The legislative body in 2005 viewed students accumulating “unnecessary” and “excessive” course credits as “inefficient” progress toward baccalaureate degree attainment, according to Katie Paquet, associate vice president for public affairs and external relations for the Arizona Board of Regents. The sur-

charge was enacted so dollars appropriated by the state are maximized for students working toward degree attainment, Paquet explained. “The surcharge is a mechanism to offset lost state funding for these students,” she said. Alex Yang, an aerospace engineering senior slated to eventually pay the surcharge, said the policy sends “mixed signals” to students. This is because general education classes “supposedly diversify our education,” he said, which is why students like him and others chose to take extra classes. “I want to be more well-rounded with more subjects than just what I am required to study,” Yang said. “It (the policy) makes me think that it’s all about the money and not about the supposed inefficient use.”

Currently, 13 students who do not meet any of the policy’s exemptions are paying the surcharge. Elizabeth Acree, an enrollment manager at the Office of the Registrar, said that out of the handful of students who get “caught” in the policy, four or five will question it and want an explanation. In the scope of 39,000 students, she explained, that is “not a lot.” Acree said that the policy is often situational. There are times when students continue to take classes and don’t progress, she explained, but there are students who have legitimate reasons and often want to CREDIT, 2

HARDLY PARTY Survey shows steady decline in level of student alcohol use By Michelle A. Weiss DAILY WILDCAT

T

he number of alcoholic drinks consumed by the average UA student has fallen considerably since 2002, according to the results of this year’s Health and Wellness survey. In 2002, survey results indicated that the average student had 7.6 drinks per week. In the spring of 2011, the number dropped to 4.3, said David Salafsky, director of Health Promotion and Preventive Services. “I think alcohol is one of those things that people think, ‘It’s never going to change, students are always going to drink,’” Salafsky said. “I think to some extent that’s probably true.” This year does not appear to be an outlier either. According to Salafsky, the results indicate a “significant reduction year after year” over the last decade. This year’s data showed that 83 percent of UA students party one night per week or less. “I would’ve thought it would be more,”

4.3

said Ella Moore, a nutritional sciences sophomore. She said the University of Arizona Police Department is strict, so she doesn’t go to house parties anymore. “They (UAPD) are crazy,” Moore said. Rachel Low, a marketing freshman, said she could believe that drinking has dropped because of the strict drinking and driving laws. The survey also indicated that 98 percent of UA students prefer to date someone who drinks moderately or doesn’t drink at all. “I wouldn’t want to date an alcoholic but I don’t care if they drink,” Moore said. While alcohol is a popular college

27%

topic, so is sex. Salafsky said for 2011, 66 percent of UA students who have had sexual intercourse in the past year said they usually or always use a condom. The survey also takes into account relationship status. Furthermore, 79 percent of UA students had one or no sexual partners. “College students, by in large, are a pretty healthy population,” Salafsky said. However, he thinks the two most significant factors facing students in terms of their health are things related to alcohol and mental health, he said. “If we look at the leading causes of death among college students, number one is motor vehicle accidents, of course we all know alcohol plays a role in that,” he said. “And number two is suicide.” Campus Health Service was awarded SURVEY, 2

PERCENTAGE OF UA

STUDENTS SUFFERING FROM ANXIETY OR DEPRESSION

66% PERCENTAGE OF UA

NUMBER OF DRINKS THE AVERAGE UA STUDENT HAS PER WEEK

STUDENTS WHO USE CONDOMS REGULARLY

UA store matches prices on textbooks By Amer Taleb DAILY WILDCAT

Textbook suppliers catering to UA students may have met their match in the UofA Bookstore. A revision to the bookstore’s Lowest Price Guarantee pits the bookstore’s price-matching service against online retailers in addition to UA-area bookstores. After buying a textbook from the bookstore, students have one week to find a cheaper price online and collect the difference in cash. Verification of the lower price can be printed or shown to the cashier via a mobile device. Peer-to-peer selling is excluded and books must have the same cover and be of the same condition. Only required or recommended textbooks are eligible. “It’s pretty straight forward,” said Kurtis Durfey, marketing specialist for the UofA Bookstore. Durfey said the service was introduced to tie together the low prices of online merchants without forcing students to wait for a mail arrival or pay for shipping. Rachel Underwood, a junior studying Spanish, said the service would not impact her significantly because she buys most of her textbooks through online peer-to-peer selling. Shopping at the bookstore is a last resort, she said. “Their prices are ludicrously high and their buy-back rates are ludicrously low,” she said. Durfey emphasized that the bookstore is working in the interest of students, not against themBOOKSTORE, 2

SOURCE: 2011 HEALTH AND WELLNESS SURVEY

Quickies >> Stormy weather: Hurricane Irene hit the East Coast this weekend. According to news outlets, the storm left 21 dead and 4.5 million without power.

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