Universities See Steep Rise In Cost Of Tuition, Some Exceed $90,000 Per Year

Several universities and colleges on the Northeast Coast, such as Tufts University and Yale University, are raising the cost of attendance, surpassing previous years and exemplifying the growing cost of higher education.

According to CNN, several New England universities have risen in cost, some exceeding $90,000 for a single school year. Tufts University, for example, now has an estimated cost of attendance of nearly $96,000 for the 2024-25 years. Tuition alone has inflated to $68,946, a $2,588 difference from the previous school year. 

Yale University’s previously estimated cost of attendance of $83,880 has now ballooned to $87,150, with tuition rising an additional $2,550. This is an overall 3.9% increase. 

The universities have maintained that need-based financial aid for undergraduate students will continue to be distributed to account for budget constraints. Dean of undergraduate admissions and financial aid for Yale Jeremiah Quinlan discussed this in an official statement from Yale.

“I am proud that Yale is one of only a small handful of institutions that meet 100% of all families’ demonstrated financial need without requiring students or parents to take out loans, with consistent policies for all students regardless of citizenship or immigration status,” he said. 

Tufts University’s executive director of media relations Patrick Collins also spoke to CNN decision. “We are proud to be one of a small number of universities committed to meeting the full demonstrated financial need of all admitted undergraduate students,” he said. “Because of this commitment, a significant number of students pay substantially less in tuition than the published price.”

This phenomenon isn’t just sweeping the northeast. On March 28, University of Wisconsin-Madison President Jay Rothman proposed a 3.75% tuition increase, citing the growing rate of inflation, according to WISN 12 News. “Our universities are facing challenging economic realities, and students and parents should know that we plan to be good financial stewards,” said Rothman, who has served as president of the university and its 13 campuses since June 2022. Rothman’s proposal will be subject to a vote by the UW Board of Regents on April 4. If successful, this would mark the second year in a row that tuition has risen under Rothman’s stewardship and with his endorsement.

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