University of Wisconsin campuses seek to increase in-state tuition by 3.75% next year
The University of Wisconsin System wants to increase tuition for in-state undergraduates by 3.75% next school year, UW System President Jay Rothman said Thursday.
If approved, it would be the second consecutive increase for resident students after a decade of seeing their base tuition rate frozen. Tuition increased by an average of 5% this school year.
"We consider this a modest increase in light of recent inflation levels," Rothman told reporters.
Approval of tuition increase to come next week
The tuition increase would generate an estimated $39 million annually and be used just to keep pace with rising costs, Rothman said.
The UW Board of Regents are expected to vote on the proposal at next week's board meeting.
Other cost increases coming, too
Student fees will increase by an average $74 annually. Out-of-state tuition rates will also increase.
In addition, seven universities proposed increases on top of the 3.75% base tuition bump to fund specific priorities, such as academic advising, financial aid and faculty hiring in high-demand programs. The UW System didn't specify the universities or detail how large the increases were in its announcement.
More information on the increases will be released next week.
Increases come after a decade of tuition freezes
Republican lawmakers froze tuition beginning in the 2013-14 school year, though UW's two-year branch campuses had tuition frozen off and on for several years before that, too.
Outrage over a 2013 audit sparked the freeze. The report showed the UW System held hundreds of millions of unspent tuition money while raising tuition 5.5%, the maximum allowed by law at the time, for six years in a row.
UW officials responded by saying most of the “slush fund” or “rainy day” reserves were, in fact, already designated or planned for specific programs or projects.
The most recent report by the nonpartisan Legislative Audit Bureau showed the UW System had about $1.1 billion in reserves at end of June 2023.
Rothman said Thursday that UW-Madison held a significant portion of the current reserves while other universities are taking actions to reduce their expenses, such as implementing furloughs, cutting employees and closing campuses.
UW campuses struggled under freeze
Regents and campus leaders talked for years about the unsustainability of the freeze, which weren't offset by state budget increases.
This budget session, the GOP-controlled Legislature kept the UW System's operating budget flat.
Even with the tuition increase, 10 of the 13 universities are spending more money than they are bringing in this year.
A major part of the problem is declining enrollment. Asked whether increased tuition would exacerbate enrollment trends, Rothman said a UW degree remains a good value.
"The economics around the return on investment in higher education are unassailable," he said. "You will do better, substantially better, with that four-year degree and beyond. I appreciate there are concerns around cost, but when you compare us to other universities, we are still a terrific value."
UW System affordability review coming
Rothman asked for an updated affordability review to be released this fall.
The UW System's 2022 review found Wisconsin’s public universities were the most affordable in theMidwest.
What are UW campus in-state tuition rates for 2024-25?
In-state tuition at UW-Madison this year is $11,216. A 3.75% increase would bump the cost $388 to $11,604. Other universities next year would charge:
UW-Eau Claire: $9,643
UW-Green Bay: $8,700
UW-La Crosse: $9,896
UW-Madison: $11,604
UW-Milwaukee: $10,398
UW Oshkosh: $8,532
UW-Parkside: $8,271
UW-Platteville: $8,425
UW-River Falls: $8,824
UW-Stevens Point: $9,049
UW-Stout: $9,386
UW-Superior: $8,813
UW-Whitewater: $8,406
Contact Kelly Meyerhofer at kmeyerhofer@gannett.comor 414-223-5168. Follow her on X (Twitter) at @KellyMeyerhofer.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: University of Wisconsin seeks to increase tuition by 3.75% next year
