University votes to increase tuition for '02-'03 academic year

The Board of Trustees voted last week to increase the total fees to attend Princeton by 3.94 percent. The bill, including tuition, room and board, was $33,743 this year. Next year it will be $35,072 – an increase of $1,329.

The rate of inflation in the Princeton area is expected to be between 2 and 3 percent over the next year, University officials said.

In its report to President Tilghman, the Priorities Committee said tuition must increase to match the rate of growth in salaries, which are the University's primary operating expense. The committee is composed of administrators, faculty, staff and students who help shape the operating budget.

One member of the Priorities Committee, Jason Navarino '04 also noted the University's effort to remain competitive with the tuitions of other top colleges. Though the Justice Department barred schools from conferring to set tuition rates when a 1991 investigation found that they were breaking anti-trust laws, Princeton still makes its tuition plans based on what others are charging.

"My gut feeling is that we're getting ripped off," said Andre Kurs '04. "On the one hand, I bear the cost of their decision. But on the other hand, they do have to remain competitive. That's why we're here, after all, because it's a competitive school."

As the cost of a Princeton education continues to escalate, fewer and fewer students are paying the sticker price. The increase in tuition and fees is greater than last year's 3-percent hike.

Improvements made last year in financial aid – most notably a switch from loans to grants – attracted more students in need of aid than ever before. A record-breaking 46.5 percent of the class of 2005 is on financial aid.

In an article in The New York Times yesterday, Academic Management Services — a company that helps parents finance college tuition — reported receiving thousands more requests for payment extensions than in years past.

The rising numbers of requests reflects how the recession is affecting middle-class families, who say lost jobs and falling stocks have caused their financial worries.

The University expects to receive $176 million from tuition and fees next year, along with just more than $300 million in operating income from the endowment and $168 million in government grants. Combined with a few other sources of income, the total budget for next year is $801 million.