Hayes said parents considering sending students out-of-state are sometimes cautious, because they know tuition would be more expensive. However, Hayes said what causes them to consider OU is that rates are comparable to in-state tuition in Texas.

“Basically, Texas students saw that there wasn’t much difference between in-state tuition in Texas, and out-of-state tuition at OU,” Gilcrease said.

Gilcrease said one of the best selling points for students is that Norman isn’t that far away from home.

“The University of Oklahoma is the perfect drive from Dallas,” she said. “I’m close enough to home that I can drive there if there’s an emergency, and it’s far enough away that my parents won’t visit every weekend.”