WASHINGTON
Although the average tuition bill is up 35 percent compared to five years ago, the skyrocketing increases in recent years has slowed to a sputter, according to the College Board’s annual report on college tuition released Tuesday. Tuition for the 2006-07 academic year went up, just not as much, according to “Trends in College Pricing 2006.”
A companion report, “Trends in Student Aid 2006,” found that financial aid has not kept pace with the increases, furthering concerns that poor students are being priced out of higher education.
“The College Board continues to advocate for need-based aid, so that more students can have the opportunity to benefit from a college education,” says Gaston Caperton, president of the College Board. “Though student aid makes it possible for many students from low- and middle-income families to afford college, we still face inequality in access to higher education across ethnic, racial and economic lines.”
According to the report, based on published tuition rates for the 2006-07 academic year and adjusted for inflation, the average tuition at public four-year colleges was $5,836, a $344 increase over last year. Tuition at private, four-year institutions went up by 11 percent over the past five years to $22,218. At community colleges, the average tuition was $2,272, about $90 more than last year. With financial aid, however, students at public four-year schools pay $2,700 and those at private colleges pay about $13,200.
The report does not indicate the causes for the tuition increases but cites factors such as faculty salaries, health benefits and prices of goods and services purchased by colleges.
The report notes that Pell Grant funding dropped from $13.6 billion in 2004-2005 to $12.7 billion in 2005-2006. Although total student aid, including institutional aid and student loans, increased by 3.7 percent to $134.8 billion in 2005-2006, the average Pell Grant per recipient fell by $120.
