Purdue focuses on decreasing number of budget cuts - ALISHA YADAV, Purdue Exponent

The return on investment of a Purdue degree is just high enough to make paying the increased tuition worth it. At least that's what a recent study shows. The return on investment for an in-state Purdue graduate who goes right into the workforce after graduation is 14 percent over thirty years. For an out-of-state student, it's 10.9 percent. Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Tim Sands cited both these numbers as reasons Purdue is just as strong of an investment today as ever. It's student success that is on Sands' mind when he begins telling academic colleges which parts of their budget they should begin cutting this week. Now that the operating budget and tuition and fees increase has been approved by the Board of Trustees, Sands is getting to work looking at the plans each academic college was required to submit to him. The plans detail what parts of the college could handle a budget cut, if necessary. These plans were condensed into one memo - the "Blood, Sweat and Tears" memo. "All we've been doing for two years or more is talk about cuts," Sands said. "It will be painful, but not catastrophic."