Since the University of Nevada, Reno’s founding in 1874, the campus population has significantly increased, attracting new students from various backgrounds and locations. However, as the university continues to grow, so does the cost of attendance.
Gracee Gardner, a sophomore at the University of Nevada, Reno, is, for the most part, financially independent. However, even with student loans and other financial aid, Gardner still has to have a stable form of income to pay for the other portions that financial aid doesn’t cover. Regardless of the numerous stories covering the increasing costs of living and education, Gardner feels that it’s still not being taken seriously and people struggle the most, especially in her situation.
“Yeah, I’ve taken out some student loans, I get, like, I believe it’s $10,000 a year or something like that,” Gardner said. “I split it up between the terms for rent, mainly, and then my parents helped me with books and stuff, and my great grandparents actually have been a great help. They helped pay for my first two years of school. So next year, I’m definitely going to need to bump up some of my financial work with them, which is why I also have the second job to hopefully save up for next year, when it is a little bit more on me as I get older too.”
Since the recent fee additions that have been passed, tuition costs have rapidly changed since Gardner enrolled in fall 2023. In addition to the rising costs of her degree, the pre-nursing major also has her apartment rent to cover, as well as necessities like groceries. In fall 2024, Gardner decided it was time to get a second job working as a hostess at the local Reno restaurant La Familia, with her first job being a sales associate at Aerie.
“I work there just kind of whenever they need me,” Gardner said. “I worked in my hometown at the same store over the summer, so I just transferred up to this one when I came back up for school, and I work there as much as I can after school, closing shifts in between, you know, weekends when I can too… Then I have the restaurant job at La Familia, which I’m a host. I work two days a week with my roommates, another host, and one of my friends. We each have two days a week where we work at that.”
Gardner raises issues about the financial crisis that is happening across the country. “I get probably $400 of financial aid from the university,” she said. “I did not qualify for the WUE, I pay out-of-state tuition because I was 0.5% away from getting a 3.25 on my GPA, which qualifies for the WUE– which, you know, I do understand at some point, they have to have a level. But I did have relatively good grades throughout high school and everything.”
Gardner’s standing on the financial predicament she and fellow students are in pushed her to open up about the matter. She hopes that her story and the information that she provides will help change the system, starting with the University of Nevada.
Alex Psak can be reached via email at apsak@unr.edu or on Instagram @alexandrapsak.
