Trustees Meeting: Next year's tuition, fees to increase 4.9 percent

Being a Quaker just got more expensive.

As of this coming academic year, tuition, fees and room and board for Penn undergraduate students will add up to $46,124, up from $43,960 this year.

This new figure, announced yesterday at the Board of Trustees Budget and Finance Committee, marks a 4.9 percent increase over last year's total costs.

The increase is slightly less than last year's increase of 5.25 percent.

Specifically, the increase is broken down as follows: a 5.15 percent increase in tuition to $35,916, a 5.6 percent increase in fees to $3,756 and an average room and board increase of 4.1 percent to $10,208.

The increase will create additional revenue of $23.9 million for the University - money that it will use to finance current and future projects, as well as an increased financial-aid initiative.

Of the 16 schools that Penn considers peer institutions, Penn is expecting to be below the average total cost increase, which will be about 5 percent, Vice President for Budget and Management Analysis Bonnie Gibson said.

"We've been quite prudent with our tuition increases," Gibson said, adding that Penn has been consistently in the range of 4- to 6-percent annual increases.

She also projected that, once all peer institutions announce their annual increases, Penn will have the eighth-highest increase.

Of Penn's 16 peer institutions, Georgetown will likely have the highest cost, increasing 5.7 percent to $47,656. Princeton ranks near the bottom of the list, with a 4.2 percent increase to $43,980.

Tuition increases are carefully calculated in a complex budget process, said Penn Executive President Craig Carnaroli. The final increase is determined by considering current budget needs as well as projected resources for new University initiatives.

"It's a balancing act," Carnaroli said, noting that about two thirds of the budget goes to current initiatives, and one third goes to new projects.

And, as evidenced by the unanimous vote, Penn officials think the increase is right in line.

"We believe the proposal is fair and balanced in that it enables us to fund our key priorities and improve access through our revised financial-aid policies," Carnaroli said.

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