By Lisa Powers, Penn State
DUNMORE – Penn State’s Board of Trustees on Friday approved an average tuition increase for 2012-13 of 2.4 percent for undergraduate students, representing the lowest tuition increase at the University since 1967 and one of the lowest among public universities in the nation this year.
“We were guided by several priorities in assembling our budget plan,” President Rodney Erickson said. “Chief among those priorities was to keep tuition increases at the lowest possible level. We are committed to keeping tuition increases as modest as possible without compromising academic quality.”
Erickson said the combination of level funding in Penn State’s appropriation from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the reduction of $28 million in recurring expenses and other budgetary changes allowed Penn State to keep tuition increases less than the change in last year’s Consumer Price Index.
Tuition for both Pennsylvania resident and non-resident lower-division undergraduate students at Commonwealth Campuses will increase 1.9 percent. Tuition for lower-division, nonresident students at University Park will increase 2.4 percent and Pennsylvania resident students will see an increase of 2.9 percent.
“Two-thirds of our undergraduate students will see an increase between 1.9 percent and 2.4 percent,” Erickson said. “The very low increase for students attending our Commonwealth Campuses underscores our strong commitment to enable access for Pennsylvania students who may want to remain close to home to complete their degree programs.”
Translated into dollars, in-state, lower-division students will see an increase per semester of $219 at University Park and $116 at most Commonwealth Campuses. Nonresident, lower-division students will see a tuition increase per semester of $329 at University Park and $174 at most Commonwealth Campuses.
The Information Technology Fee will increase $4 per semester for full-time undergraduate students. The Student Activity Fee will increase $3 per semester for most full-time undergraduate students and the Facilities Fee will increase $4 per semester for most full-time undergraduate students.
A complete listing of Penn State’s tuition rate schedules and fees can be found athttp://www.tuition.psu.edu.
