The real price of public colleges may fall this year for the first time in a decade

© Bill Grant—Alamy Stock Photo   University of Missouri Jesse Hall.

By Kaitlin Mulhere, Money

For the first time in a decade, the real cost of a four-year public college may actually be decreasing.

Sticker prices at public colleges and universities this fall increased at a rate slower than inflation, according to two annual reports on college pricing and financial aid released today by the College Board. Private colleges, while above inflation, also posted modest year-over-year increases in published tuition and fees.

It’s too soon to say for certain whether that slow growth will lower the net price—the amount families actually pay after discounting and grant aid is taken off the sticker price—but signs are promising. If financial aid levels for the 2018-19 academic year remain the same as last year, average net prices at public colleges will dip slightly to $14,880, according to the report.

One year of encouraging news doesn’t turn the tide on overall college affordability: In 23 of the past 25 years, annual increases in published tuition and fees at four-year colleges were higher than the rate of inflation. In that same time period, published tuition and fees rose at a pace that dwarfed any gains in median family income.

The result? Tuition bills continue to take up an increasing portion of families’ incomes. As the chart above shows, while the average price families pay at public and private four-year colleges has increased 70% and nearly 40%, respectively, in the past 25 years, inflation-adjusted median family income has grown just 22%.

The average net price for a year at a public university is now equal to 20% of the median family income, compared to 14% in 1993. At private colleges, the share has grown to 36%, up from 31%.

One reason for the positive signs in public college costs is that state funding has increased in recent years as budgets recover from the Great Recession. Private colleges, meanwhile, have worked hard to keep financial aid increases in step with tuition increases to keep their net prices somewhat competitive with publics.

“A lot of states are trying very hard to keep tuition increases low, especially in the past couple years,” says Jennifer Ma, an economist at the College Board and coauthor of the report. Many states have kept tuition basically flat, she added.

COMMENTS

Name

Career,1003,
ltr
item
eZineInsider.com Career: The real price of public colleges may fall this year for the first time in a decade
The real price of public colleges may fall this year for the first time in a decade
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4esxdeLMf-K53Nci94uYOLy_Yum-AC2xMdGZ6UXlFwnUNG4_aoZHLwdqEBW-J9YOVKyA0xnFVZSV5GAvfzkGVzceCDeqfLfpzyaxE6MLBhzSppJqP9lfEozjcW_kzNxEErjyzRr_RRF8/s1600/1.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgx4esxdeLMf-K53Nci94uYOLy_Yum-AC2xMdGZ6UXlFwnUNG4_aoZHLwdqEBW-J9YOVKyA0xnFVZSV5GAvfzkGVzceCDeqfLfpzyaxE6MLBhzSppJqP9lfEozjcW_kzNxEErjyzRr_RRF8/s72-c/1.jpg
eZineInsider.com Career
https://career.ezineinsider.com/2018/10/the-real-price-of-public-colleges-may.html
https://career.ezineinsider.com/
https://career.ezineinsider.com/
https://career.ezineinsider.com/2018/10/the-real-price-of-public-colleges-may.html
true
1849605764304258819
UTF-8
Loaded All Posts Not found any posts VIEW ALL Read More Reply Cancel reply Delete By Home PAGES POSTS View All RECOMMENDED FOR YOU LABEL ARCHIVE SEARCH ALL POSTS Not found any post match with your request Back Home Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat January February March April May June July August September October November December Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec just now 1 minute ago $$1$$ minutes ago 1 hour ago $$1$$ hours ago Yesterday $$1$$ days ago $$1$$ weeks ago more than 5 weeks ago Followers Follow THIS PREMIUM CONTENT IS LOCKED STEP 1: Share to a social network STEP 2: Click the link on your social network Copy All Code Select All Code All codes were copied to your clipboard Can not copy the codes / texts, please press [CTRL]+[C] (or CMD+C with Mac) to copy Table of Content