Board holds increase to 3 percent despite rising costs and marginal increase in state support
WORCESTER -- Highlighting the need to preserve affordability for students while maintaining academic excellence in the face of rising costs and a marginal increase in state support, the University of Massachusetts Board of Trustees voted today to increase tuition by an average of $416 for in-state undergraduate students at UMass.
Across the four UMass undergraduate campuses - Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth and Lowell - tuition will average $14,253 for in-state undergraduate students during the 2017-18 academic year, which constitutes a 3 percent rise over 2016-17. UMass Medical School's tuition rates were set by the board in June.
"The decision to increase tuition is never made lightly," said Board of Trustees Chairman Rob Manning. "This is a modest and reasonable increase that will require the campuses to continue to cut costs, but ensures that we maintain excellence, access and affordability."
UMass President Marty Meehan said this year's budget will require "continued belt-tightening" by the campuses and that cost reductions will continue to be implemented throughout the fiscal year, in addition to ongoing efficiency and effectiveness measures expected to save the university nearly $300 million over 10 years.
"When recommending tuition rates, our goal was to ensure affordability for our students, maintain excellence in our academic and research enterprises, and preserve our competitiveness and the demand for a UMass education," said President Meehan. "I'm very proud of the work we've done to minimize impact on students and their families. This plan puts UMass at the low end of the scale of tuition increases among our private and public peers in the region, underscoring the fact that UMass remains an exceptional value for a world-class public research university."
The university's Fiscal Year 2018 budget projects a 3.3 percent or $105.6 million increase in expenses across the system as part of a $3.3 billion university budget.
The state's Fiscal Year 2018 state budget includes a $513.5 million appropriation for UMass, a 1 percent increase over last year's appropriation. UMass had submitted a budget request of $538.6 million.
The tuition increase is projected to generate $32.5 million in additional revenue, approximately 30 percent of which will be directed to financial aid across the system. In total, the university's FY18 budget directs a record $347 million to university-funded financial aid for students.
"This budget clearly maintains our commitment to university-funded financial aid to ensure that qualified students, regardless of their means, have the opportunity to access and complete a transformative UMass education," said President Meehan.
Tuition costs for the 2017-18 academic year at all five UMass campuses will be available at Tuition & Fees.