The University of Louisiana System is taking major steps to help higher education fulfill its 2030 goal of increasing the percentage of bachelor degree holders in the state from 44.2 to 60 percent. The goal is to attract former students back on track to earn diplomas.

Compete Louisiana is the name of the plan. The Advocate reported the nine-member UL System will offer program-eligible returning students tuition at $275 per credit, which is 45 percent less than the $400-$500 per credit the campuses typically charge their students.

No fees will be charged in most cases and there will always be a personal coach to guide returning students through the system towards graduation.

Jim Henderson, system president, said students leave college early because of pressing family concerns, job opportunities or the cost being too high. Budget cuts to higher education over a decade also shifted the tuition burden from the state to students or their parents.

The newspaper said many former students had the twin disadvantages of not holding a degree while having to pay back debt for old loans taken out for their earlier college efforts that fell short of graduation.

The goal of getting former students back into college is to train them for better-paying jobs that demand more skills, and to help build a stronger Louisiana workforce. The number of students that can benefit from Compete Louisiana totals 653,000.

McNeese State University is one of the nine institutions in the UL System, and its former students who didn’t get their degrees are some of the beneficiaries of the new program. The other schools are Grambling, Louisiana Tech, Nicholls, Northwestern, Southeastern, and the Universities of Louisiana at Monroe and Lafayette and the University of New Orleans.

Henderson told the newspaper some 11.6 million jobs were created after the last great recession and college graduates filled 11.5 million of them. He said it doesn’t take a degree to recognize the value of a college degree and former students would be smart to return to school. Former students interested in the new program can get more information at competela.org.

“You were on the path to finishing your degree — then life happened,” the website says. “But your success story won’t end there. Jump back on path right now with passionate coaches dedicated to helping you walk across the stage.”

After applying, students get matched with a coach who will evaluate a degree path and who will stay connected with the student though graduation. We hope former students will take advantage of this great opportunity to get that degree they always wanted and need.