Lenitus

Interesting article from the New York Times earlier this week:

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/01/ed...%20more&st=cse

As state funding for public universities is dwindling, schools are being forced to cut classes and raise tuition. "The students are at a point of rebellion, because they’re paying more and getting less," says Jane V. Wellman, executive director of the Delta Project on Postsecondary Education Costs, Productivity and Accountability.

rodney

So, net-net....it will be easier to be accepted OOS to many publics, but we will be paying more (closer to private) and we will be faced with larger class sizes and the possibility of not being able to get the classes needed to graduate in four years.....doesn't sound like a great scenario to me but what do I know?

dstark

Well rodney, that doesn't sound too good.

BCEagle91

State University is what you make of it. You have to plan well and know the problem areas ahead of time and work to avoid them. I think that it is hard to do.

Sometimes OOS works better financially if there is a regional bloc that provides for lower prices than outside the bloc.

barrons

It is also worthy to note that with the decline in endowments, many privates are also charging more for less.

hawkette

While the cost to attend publics may be going up in the future, they are still usually cheaper than most privates. Different levels of financial aid (both need and merit) may affect this calculus, but there is a pricing difference and students/families should be thinking about the differences in the student experience at publics vs privates (class sizes, access to resources, etc) and whether this cost difference is justified for their needs.

To help in judging the affordability of various publics for OOS students, I thought it might be helpful to compare the OOS Tuition & Fee cost at the nation's top publics vs. that of the average Top 50 private.

Here is the comparison showing the discount that one receives at the individual State University vs the Top 50 Private:

Top 50 Private College Average for Tuition & Fees = $38,215

% Discount, ie, Public Cost/Private Cost , OOS Tuition & Fees , State University

10% , $34,230 , U MICHIGAN
17% , $31,870 , U VIRGINIA
17% , $31,559 , UC S CRUZ
18% , $31,385 , UC DAVIS
19% , $30,819 , UC SAN DIEGO
20% , $30,724 , UC S BARBARA
20% , $30,600 , U TEXAS
20% , $30,592 , WILLIAM & MARY
21% , $30,022 , UC BERKELEY
22% , $29,897 , UCLA
25% , $28,796 , UC IRVINE
26% , $28,270 , MICHIGAN ST
32% , $26,160 , INDIANA U
32% , $25,946 , PENN STATE
33% , $25,756 , U ILLINOIS
33% , $25,716 , GEORGIA TECH
33% , $25,486 , U CONNECTICUT
34% , $25,118 , PURDUE
35% , $24,998 , CLEMSON
36% , $24,367 , U WASHINGTON
37% , $23,990 , U MARYLAND
38% , $23,852 , U PITTSBURGH
38% , $23,744 , U FLORIDA
39% , $23,186 , U DELAWARE
40% , $22,886 , TEXAS A&M
41% , $22,518 , RUTGERS
42% , $22,342 , U GEORGIA
42% , $22,294 , U N CAROLINA
42% , $22,278 , OHIO STATE
42% , $22,270 , U WISCONSIN
42% , $22,198 , U IOWA
44% , $21,488 , VIRGINIA TECH
59% , $15,542 , U MINNESOTA

rodney

"Michigan increased private fund-raising and developed a tuition structure that took advantage of a growing number of out-of-state students, who now pay $36,163 a year in tuition and fees — about the same as Princeton. "

Hawkette: I think you need to adjust your UMich $$ amount.....

hawkette

I,too, saw that U Michigan number in the article, but decided not to change my numbers because I am trying to compare T&F data from the same school year (which in this case is Fall, 2008) and not disadvantage any one school in the comparison. Probably all of the schools have seen an increase over the numbers posted above.

mom2collegekids

Some state schools aren't getting huge budget cuts. President Witt at Alabama says that the cuts that they will have will only limit some plans for relandscaping (no big deal at all, since the school's landscaping is already very nice ). The plans for Phase 3 of the mega Science and Engineering Complex are full speed ahead.

CJ Madison

My D @ UNC Chapel Hill has already seen the efffects. Less sections, larger classes, harder to get the classes she wants. Next year, the into romance languages will be via distance education only! Can't wait to see how these kids "speak" French @ the intemediate levels when the time comes.

Fortunately, NC public universities are still quite a "bang for the buck".

noimagination

^ Indeed, some states are handling the recession better than others. Perhaps the universities in Utah, Wyoming, Alabama, etc. will see growth relative to the rest of the country?

GoBlue81

T&F is only part of the cost. To compare the real cost, you must include R&B. See feature thread "Most expensive college dorms".

GoBlue81

What hurts more ... 10% cut in state funding vs. 25% loss in endowment?

BCEagle91

One other thing about Public Universities is the much lower level of hand-holding and the big lecture halls in gen eds. If your child needs more hand-holding and advisory services, then private schools may be the way to go. It may be that the cuts apply to both public and private schools. I've watched the effects on our son's department offerings for the spring and they are there. We just have to work around them.

IBclass06

Depends on how much money you have to begin with, eh? It's also a false dichotomy since schools like Michigan have suffered from both.


Even (perhaps especially) under the current conditions, top private colleges will have a monetary advantage over most of the top publics. My own department (in the humanities at a public) has been hit harder than comparable departments at other schools. Since my funding is very much up in the air, it's really quite vexing.