As tuition at four-year public universities continues to rise, so does the amount of grant aid offered by these universities, according to a survey conducted by the College Board.
The survey, released last week, states that tuition has increased by 14 percent at public four-year colleges, while tuition at private four-year colleges increased by only six percent. The survey also states that grant aid offered by public universities has grown by 84 percent since the 1992-93 academic year, while tuition has increased by 37.9 percent.
“State grant aid has increased by 24 percent this year alone,” Steve Van Ess said, director of the University of Wisconsin Office of Student Financial Services. “Basic access to any university is denied to the very poor, and more grant aid money allows us to keep college within reach of everyone.”
Tuition hikes at UW were more drastic than the survey’s findings. Over the past decade, tuition at UW has increased by over 100 percent for both resident and non-resident students. This year, UW tuition escalated by 16 percent for resident students and 4 percent for non-resident students.
In the 2001-02 academic year, 15,800 undergraduate UW students received financial aid, which includes loans, scholarships and grants, totaling $112 million. This year, an estimated 16,000 undergraduates shared an estimated $122 million in financial aid at UW.
Van Ess said over the last decade, the number of aid applicants has increased by about one percent each year.
“This could be because of rising costs or just because students want unsubsidized loans or a combination of both,” he said.
While tuition is rising at a slower rate than grant aid funding, Van Ess said grant aid benefits do not affect every student, but the rising cost of tuition does.
“Of a grant pool of about 28,000 students, only about 4,000 actually get grants,” Van Ess said. “Our goal is to keep the neediest students from suffering the impact of tuition increases.”
Van Ess also said tuition is not the only price students pay.
“The rising cost of tuition is usually mitigated by other costs, like room and board, books and fees,” Van Ess said. “People are very concerned with the rising costs of tuition, but they don’t appreciate the fact that the other costs have gone up modestly.”
Skyrocketing tuition might eventually become a thing of the past, however.
Two weeks ago, the House introduced an “Affordability in Higher Education Act,” which would issue consequences to colleges that mark up tuition over twice the Consumer Price Index in a three-year period.
UW sophomore Bethany Hale said the grant aid she receives makes an important difference in her college experience.
“The money financial aid puts toward my tuition allows me to spend more money on stuff like rent and food,” Hale said. “It really helps alleviate the costs of living in Madison.”
This year, the College Board added a premier “net price” figure to the survey, which represents the amount students actually pay after all grant aid is considered.
Students who attended four-year public universities in the 2002-03 academic year received an average of $2,400 in grant aid, which minimized actual tuition and fees costs to a net price of $1,700, which is considerably less than the estimated published tuition cost of $4,115.
Students enrolled at private four-year colleges received $7,300 in aid, lowering their tuition and fees cost to a net price of $11,300, a number far lower than the published cost of $18,596.
