Cal State Hikes Fees for 2nd Diplomas : Education: Full-time studies will cost $5,800 a year. Chancellor says the state is making it almost impossible to train for new careers.

Acting under protest, the Cal State University Board of Trustees moved Wednesday to more than quadruple the fees paid by students seeking to earn a second bachelor’s or master’s degree.

The action, required by the state Legislature, would force those students to pay $5,800 a year for full-time studies starting in the fall.

Reluctant Cal State trustees said they feared that the fee increase will hurt people forced by recessionary times to study for new careers. “We’re making it almost impossible for people to come back and retrain,” Cal State system Chancellor Barry Munitz said.

Still, bowing to legislation passed during last year’s state budget crisis, the university board unanimously approved the sharp increase for so-called duplicate-degree holders. In a note of protest, trustees formally declared the move “contrary to sound public policy.”

Cal State officials estimated that about 5,000 students at the 20 Cal State campuses are working toward a degree similar in level, but not in subject, to one they already have. For example, someone with a 1983 bachelor’s degree in English might be seeking a more marketable undergraduate degree in nursing or computer science.

There are exemptions from the increases for some unemployed students, welfare recipients and some people earning teaching credentials in primary and secondary education. But most duplicate-degree students will pay $150 per unit by the semester calendar or $100 per credit on the quarter calendar--up to a maximum of $4,500.

In addition, they will continue to pay the regular university fee for California residents, which is $1,308 but is expected to rise to help cover the state’s deficit. Out-of-state residents pay more.

The change could affect another 15,000 students if legislation under discussion in Sacramento passes, officials said. That bill would widen the definition of duplicate-degree students from those formally enrolled in degree programs to all those taking classes, whether for fun, career advancement or early exploration of possible degrees.

Community college students with bachelor’s degrees had their fees jump this month from $6 per credit to $50. Even though the two-year colleges anticipate a large number of dropouts as a result, Gov. Pete Wilson wants the fees increased to $105 a unit next year.

Wilson’s recent budget proposal for 1993-94 would cut general fund money for Cal State by 4.5%, or $67.7 million below this year. Because of other fixed cost increases, Munitz has told his campuses to plan for overall cuts of 7%, possibly including layoffs of tenured faculty.

Munitz said Wednesday that he will announce his recommendation for a general student fee increase in March, denying reports by student leaders that he already has decided to seek an increase of about $600.

Munitz requested an education summit with University of California leaders to develop what he called a more logical and predictable policy on fee setting. Instead of reacting to annual crises, the two state systems by 1996 should link students’ fees to the average of comparable schools nationwide or base them on a fixed share, possibly 30%, of the real cost of instruction, he said.

In other matters, Munitz proposed a work-for-tuition program Wednesday that echoed themes in President Clinton’s plan to have students repay college loans through public service. Munitz suggested that students help build a campus at Ft. Ord, the military base in Monterey County that is being closed and converted to other uses.

Cal State has received strong signals that it will receive 2,000 of the fort’s 28,000 acres as well as $135 million in federal grants for a campus, Munitz said. However, the idea of starting a campus while existing ones are starved for funds faces controversy statewide.

Munitz also named Karl Anatol, the provost of Cal State Long Beach, as the interim president of the campus. A permanent successor to outgoing President Curt McCray will be named next year.