The Ohio University Board of Trustees approved a 3.3 percent tuition increase for students in the class of 2021 on Friday.
The increase would cost in-state students an additional $388 per year more than the current tuition rate of $11,744 for an expected total of $12,132. The class of 2020 saw an increase of about $200 over the previous year's guaranteed tuition rate.
Guaranteed tuition means students pay a flat-rate fee for their entire time at OU.
“We modeled what that increase is and we also modeled what that would mean for an entire four-year period of time,” Pam Benoit, executive vice
Part of the increase is to make up for a $5.6 million loss in state funding during Fiscal Year 2017.
OU President Roderick McDavis said the university’s tuition and fees depend more on state policy than federal policy and that the university has to project accordingly.
“Our guarantee last four years,” he said. “Ohio’s budgeting process is two, so we have to be very careful about what we project … we’re assuming a lot of the risk.”
McDavis also stressed that the increased cost helps maintain the quality of the university.
“The cost goes up every year for producing quality in the classroom, so … whatever we’re talking about, the cost goes up on an annual basis,” he said. “We have to be sensitive to that so we maintain a high quality on the educational side.”
Tuition could also increase for students in the class of 2018, the only class not included in guaranteed tuition next academic year. Those students could pay $105 more, or a 2 percent increase over the current academic year.
Administrators are also waiting to hear if the state will put another tuition freeze in place. One has been in place for the past two years, meaning students on non-guaranteed tuition plans have not seen an increase in tuition during the past two academic years.
