UCLA, it looks like it’s time for me to say goodbye ““ two quarters earlier than I expected.

Due to an overwhelming amount of fee hikes, budget cuts and a reduction in my financial aid awards, I’m left with very few (and financially realistic) options, which is why it’s time for me to give up my textbooks and bow out early.

And I can’t say that I’m too disappointed about it. Last week, the Committee on Finance of the UC Board of Regents approved two undergraduate student fee increases that will raise the current UC tuition by 32 percent by fall 2010.

Last week, the fee increase attracted a great deal of media attention and frenzy, but tuition hikes are nothing new for UCLA students who have already experienced a substantial fee increase.

Last May, the UC Regents approved a 9.3 percent increase in student fees for the 2009-2010 school year. This meant that students throughout California ““ including yours truly ““ had to scramble in order to find jobs, take out loans or scrape through their savings in order to make up for the monetary increase this past fall.

And now, UCLA, I’m here to say enough is enough. As much as I love it here, I am comforted by the fact that I will no longer have to walk around with an ever-increasing financial burden strapped to my back.

Don’t get me wrong ““ college used to be a source of comfort for me. Despite its hefty price tag, what UCLA offered was a place to indulge in education and intellectualism, escape from the haunting questions of the “real world” (what are you going to be when you “grow up”?), and devote a good four (or more) years to the honorable profession of higher learning.

Trust me, I was definitely the person who was more than happy to check “student” in the occupation box.

When I first entered UCLA in fall 2006, I felt a great deal of optimism and excitement toward this university. I was settled in the fact that this place ““ with its enthusiastic students, fresh air, beautiful brick buildings and a wide variety of classes ““ would be my home for the next four (or possibly five) years.

I felt a great amount of encouragement to explore different subjects, and possibly double major, which prompted me to take a minor in addition to my major, and to participate in campus programs such as studying abroad.

But now, I just feel a high amount of pressure ““ from the real world, from my bank account, from the decrease in class offerings ““ to expedite my expiration date and leave the Bruin family after just three years and one quarter.

But, Bruins, we’re not alone in our rushed graduation dates. USC’s Office of Academic Records and Registrar reported an increase from 6.9 percent to 9.1 percent in students graduating at least a semester earlier than the usual four years.

And it’s easy to see why: Aside from the fiscal anxieties associated with tuition costs, transfer credits from high school Advanced Placement courses and the lessened competition of entering the job market in December (rather than in June) are all big benefits of ditching campus life early.

In my situation, my high school credits and the fact that I had opted for one of the shorter majors at UCLA allowed me a good deal of scheduling freedom. My original plan (before the cuts in my financial aid, coupled with tuition spikes) was to spend my last couple of quarters taking classes purely out of interest ““ I thought, why not pick up another minor? Or take that film class you just never had time for during your freshman year?

But suddenly, those ideas seemed like pure educational luxuries.

And, in all honesty, with the current fiscal conflict that is reverberating throughout the state’s educational system, I’m not too heartbroken to go.

Last week, UC Riverside experienced a reduction in its University Writing Program, meaning that beginning as early as this winter quarter, it will be extremely competitive for students to enroll in this required course.

This shows how the University of California system is not only taking the painful financial hits, but that students are among the first to suffer.

When I came here as a freshman, I felt a high degree of gratitude for the opportunities given to me, and perhaps the only way for me to graduate with this continued sense of appreciation is to leave college life before bitterness (from competition for class enrollment, or from working overtime to pay for textbooks) settles in.

UCLA, I love you. I’d like to keep it that way.

Scared to leave the Bruin Bubble? E-mail Chung at [email protected]. Send general comments to [email protected].