Tuition Increases in US Universities

CNN's web site is currently carrying an interesting article on significant tuition increases at universities across the United States. They write:

Consider this rather sharp increase at one public university:

I'm wondering if this trend will also begin to manifiest itself in the DL only institutions like Walden, Union, Capella and Touro.

(Note: For the full article, you may click here - CNN )

 

Capitol College is raising tuition for online graduate courses from $333 per credit (semester hour) to $354. That's about a 6.3% increase, so I guess it's in line with this trend. Capitol isn't exclusively DL though.

 

In a word yes they will rise but the question is when it will occur. There are many variables that affect the timing of when it will occur. For instance, the amount of regulations governing such things, the competiton with public schools and internet schools, the relative rates of profitability at all competing schools, etc. My thoughts would be that it would be fairly soon for the following reason(s). Since it has been proven time and time again that it is impossible for any organization in the public sector to perform as efficiently and effectively as one in the private sector and if the private sector has deemed it necessary to increase prices then it signals the public sector to do the same but it might come disguised. I.e. as the public sector schools usually say "look at the terrible private schools 'gouging' students. We will not raise our rates." BUt while they do not initially raise their rates they immediately ask for more tax payers money which is exactly the same as a tuition increase performed under coercion. Then after a year or two they will say that they have kept their rates down to a bear minimum and cannot function with a deficit so they raise rates, which of course is spread to the DL institutions.

As a side note, of all the public sector industries that I have analyzed over the years the average cost of a public sector industry tends to be 3-5 times the cost of a private sector industry.

 

Fall will be my last quarter at Cal State Hayward in their MS Ed program in Online Teaching and Learning. The tuition is going from $595/class to $795/class. That's an increase of 33%! I'm paying out of pocket, so I admit, I'm a bit pissed. But since it's my last quarter, oh well!