Tuition increases are on the radar yet again for students throughout the University.
The Budget Office is suggesting a 9.9 percent increase in undergraduate in-state tuition that would raise the total to $10,628 for the 2010-11 academic year. Meanwhile, the out-of-state rate would increase by 6 percent to $33,575. The proposal - which the Board of Visitors will discuss and bring to a vote at a meeting this Friday - also would increase tuition and fees for most graduate programs.
The increased rates are being proposed mainly as a response to decreased state funding and increased AccessUVa expenses, said Melody Bianchetto, assistant vice president for budget and financial planning, in a presentation to a group of student leaders yesterday night.
"Annual state funding has decreased by $37 million in the past four years, in addition to a $4.6 million mid-year cut this year," Bianchetto said.
Virginia does not fund higher education as much as other states do, Bianchetto said. As a result, the undergraduate in-state tuition rates at the University are about $1,200 higher than average, when compared to public universities such as the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and University of California, Berkeley.
"This is because, unfortunately, the state of Virginia does not make higher education as big of a priority as states like North Carolina and Florida," Bianchetto said.
Christina Morell, associate vice president for student affairs, agreed but said she is hopeful that Gov. Bob McDonnell's initiative to increase in-state enrollment at public institutions will provide more state funding for the University in the near future. Nevertheless, out-of-state students generally provide more funds to the University, even though their families have not paid taxes to the state of Virginia.
Bianchetto added that 16 percent of the tuition increases will go toward AccessUVa, which is especially important now that University leaders have reaffirmed their commitment to meet 100 percent of demonstrated student financial need through the program.
"We expect need to increase from 27 percent of students to 31 percent of students because when tuition costs go up, need goes up," Bianchetto said, adding that the state of the national economy has contributed to the rising need.
The Budget Office is also proposing tuition increases for several graduate programs. The tuition for first-year Law students, for example, will increase by $3,700, from $38,800 to $42,500 for in-state students. Rates will also increase by $3,700 for first-year out-of-state students, going from $43,800 to $47,500.
The Medical School tuition for first- and second-year students will increase by 7.8 percent for Virginians, to go from $35,150 to $37,880. For non-Virginians, the rate will increase 8.2 percent, from $45,150 to $48,874.
"These increases are mostly due to competitive market pricing for graduate programs around the nation," Bianchetto said.
Even as the budget office proposes tuition increases for this year, University officials may have reason to hope that the increased funds will alleviate budget concerns for the 2011-12 fiscal year.
"In the 2010-2011 year, we're going to have a year without a budget reduction, but in 2011-2012 we're going to have a $15 million budget reduction and no more stimulus money," Bianchetto said.
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