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• To receive tuition discounts through the Western Undergraduate Exchange program, students must apply to Nevada by Feb. 1.
• Feb. 1 is also the deadline to receive maximum consideration for financial aid and scholarships.

Classes had just started earlier this week when Brian Edwards, a freshman from Cedar City, Utah, was approached on the Quad and asked a simple question.

"Have you ever heard of WUE?" Edwards was asked.

Edwards, puzzled at the unfamiliar acronym, gave a simple answer.

"What's a WUE?" he asked, with a shrug and a smile.

When told that WUE - the Western Undergraduate Exchange Program - might've been a way for Edwards to have earned a reduced rate to attend the University of Nevada, Reno, last fall during his first semester of college, he corrected himself.

"Wow," he said. "That's probably what WUE should really stand for."

For all of the attention that the fall semester garners through residence hall move-in days, new student orientation and the first day of classes for a new academic year, the beginning of the spring semester is in many ways an even busier time for the University.

Scholarship and financial deadlines loom ominously at this time of year, for both current and prospective students.

And one of the best examples for prospective students is the aforementioned WUE, an undergraduate tuition program which allows students to study at the University at a reduced rate.

Deadline to apply for WUE is Feb. 1.

WUE students are not subject to out-of-state tuition charges. The program is available only to new first-time freshman to the University.

Resident students from the following states are considered, if they meet eligibility requirements: Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Utah, Washington and Wyoming.

Who's eligible? High students with a 3.0 academic grade point average (weighted) in the following core courses: four years of English; three years of math (algebra 1 and higher); three years of natural sciences; three years of social sciences.

Students must also have a minimum 22 ACT composite score, or 1,100 SAT score (combined critical reading and math).

In order to be considered for WUE status, students must submit a completed application to the University by Feb. 1, 2012, for fall semester 2012. The program is restricted to first-time freshmen entering in the fall term and is limited to four years. Students must remain in good academic standing and have continuous enrollment to maintain WUE. WUE students must live on campus in University housing for their first year.

Prospective students interested in WUE are encouraged to mark the WUE box when applying for admission to the University.