From the Daily Progress:
Applicants for the University of Virginia’s Class of 2023 may face sticker shock when applying to their programs. The university’s Board of Visitors Finance Committee approved tuition increases on Friday between 2.5 and 17.5 percent for incoming undergraduates.
It’s the third year in a row that increases for returning undergraduates remained below inflation, but administrators say increases are needed in some academic colleges to pay for high costs of instruction.
Annual increases in the schools of architecture, nursing, engineering and applied sciences, public policy and commerce range from $1,436 to $2,962.
The article did not provide an average tuition increase for the university as a whole.
Bacon’s bottom line: It makes sense to charge different tuition & fees for different schools and programs. After all, the educational products are very different. Costs vary widely from school to school, and so does competition, demand, and value provided. At the same time, this approach obscures the overall thrust of tuition policy. Is UVa moderating its tuition hikes, or is it delivering another round of overall increases. Did the UVa administration fail to provide an overall figure, or did the Daily Progress reporter fail to report it?
Update: A UVa Today article answers the main question I was asking: “Overall, the proposed weighted average tuition increase for all in-state UVA students is 3.3 percent, and the proposed weighted average for non-Virginians is 3.9 percent.”
