Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus will transition into Indiana University Columbus by fall 2024. The split was decided by both the Indiana University and Purdue University Boards of Trustees.
The IUPUC campus first opened in August 1970 as an extension of Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and would be known as IUPUI Columbus, according to the IUPUC website. In 1994, the then IUPUI Chancellor, Gerald Bepko, announced that IUPUI Columbus would be known as Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus from then on. The school has more than 1,400 students according to their admissions website.
“As we become IU Columbus, this is the beginning of a new era for the campus and a continuation of our focus on serving south central Indiana,” IUPUC Vice Chancellor and Dean Reinhold Hill said in a press release.
[Related: IU Board of Trustees approves $4.2 billion for 2023-24 budget]
The two Purdue degree programs offered at IUPUC, biology and mechanical engineering, will be affected by the split. The campus will no longer offer a mechanical engineering degree starting fall 2024 and will begin offering an Indiana University biology degree. All students who are currently enrolled in biology and mechanical engineering will be able to finish their degrees at IUPUC, according to the press release.
The transition also comes after IU and Purdue’s Board of Trustees voted to split their joint Indianapolis campus, which will officially become IU Indianapolis and Purdue University in Indianapolis. The Purdue School of Engineering and Technology and Computer Science will become part of Purdue University in Indianapolis, according to a Purdue University press release. The new school will take over the existing engineering, computer science and technology programs at IUPUI and grant students Purdue West Lafayette degrees, according to the press release.
Students enrolled in Purdue degree programs will pay the Purdue West Lafayette tuition rate and students in an IU degree program will pay the IU Indianapolis tuition rate beginning at the start of the 2024-25 academic school year, according to IUPUI’s website. IU and Purdue will uphold any financial aid or scholarships for students.
IUPUI Athletics will continue to be part of Indiana University and a Division I program, according to IUPUI’s website. It is not known yet how student-athletes in Purdue programs will be impacted because the decision is left to the NCAA.
[Related: IU, Purdue Board of Trustees agree to dissolve IUPUI]
IUPUC offers degrees such as biology, business, business administration, communication studies, criminal justice, elementary education, English, general studies, mechanical engineering, nursing, mental health counseling, psychology and sociology.
IUPUC also offers degrees that students can complete a portion of prerequisites, general education or required courses for at IUPUC then transfer to IUPUI or another IU campus to complete the degree. These degrees include anthropology, biology, chemistry, clinical laboratory science, criminal justice, cytotechnology, dental hygiene, engineering, health information administration, history, nuclear medicine technology, radiation therapy, radiography, respiratory therapy, secondary education, tourism, conventions and event management.
