UPDATE: Penn State raises tuition across the board in move university president labels ‘necessary’
Within 10 days of both Pitt and Temple raising tuition, Penn State opted to follow suit Thursday afternoon by announcing a tuition increase of its own.
Penn State’s board of trustees voted 26-5 to accept a 2.5% increase for in-state undergraduate students and a 2.75% increase for both out-of-state and graduate students for the 2021-22 academic year. For the average in-state undergrad at University Park, that amounts to a $448 annual increase for a total of $18,368. For out-of-state students at the flagship campus, the cost would become $35,946, an increase of $962.
The tuition hike came as part of the overall operating budget for the fiscal year, which was passed Thursday afternoon at a board meeting inside The Penn Stater Hotel & Conference Center.
“We always strive to support our students first by keeping tuition increases low or flat,” university President Eric Barron wrote in a news release, “and this year’s modest rise, though necessary to keep up with inflation and the university’s own rising costs, was held to the lowest percentage possible while still allowing us to deliver the world-class academic and student experiences that make Penn State so special.”
Penn State’s increase is on par with the commonwealth’s other state-related universities. Pitt raised its lowest base tuition at its Oakland campus by 2.5% Tuesday, boosting tuition $464 for in-state students to $19,092 and, for undergraduate out-of-state residents, by 4.5% (or $1,468) to $34,124. Temple raised tuition July 6 for both in-state and out-of-state undergraduate students by 2.5%. Pennsylvania residents will now pay $408 more there, or $16,488, while those out-of-state will pay $718 more, or $28,712.
The Penn State increase comes after a year of swelling expenses due to the pandemic. It is the first tuition increase since the 2017-18 school year, meaning tuition has held steady for the past three academic years.
With the hike, the land-grant university solidifies its status as one of the most expensive non-private schools in the nation for in-state students. In December, U.S. News & World Report ranked Penn State as the 10th most expensive in that category, finishing behind both Pitt and Temple, though the publication listed Temple with a higher tuition rate than most other outlets. (The states of Pennsylvania and Virginia both had three schools apiece make the list.)
When Barron took office in 2014, Penn State was ranked second on that list. Outside of Northwestern, a private school, Penn State remains the most expensive in the Big Ten for in-state students. (Its out-of-state tuition ranks in the middle of the pack for the conference.)
Still, several trustees said — despite some of their own calls for affordability — that the tuition hike was needed.
“The board does not take the decision to increase tuition lightly,” said alumni-elected trustee Brandon Short, a former All-American linebacker. “... We have gone three years without having a tuition increase. And, at the same time, prices from everything from coffee to a loaf of bread have increased, which means — in order to maintain that tuition increase of 0% — we’d have to make tremendous cuts.
“And I’m concerned if we continue to make those kinds of cuts, then it would affect the quality of a Penn State education.”
The five trustees who voted no on the increases all came from among the nine alumni-elected representatives: Edward “Ted” Brown, Alvin de Levie, Anthony Lubrano, Jay Paterno and Alice Pope.
The tuition increase comes three weeks after the state elected to keep the university’s funding steady this year, with $242.1 million for the general support appropriation, which helps to offset the cost of resident tuition. Penn State’s operating budget is $7.7 billion, while Pennsylvania has the nation’s fourth-lowest state appropriation per full-time student, according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association.
The full table for adjusted tuition for University Park students is listed below:
This story was originally published July 15, 2021 at 10:04 AM.
