The College Board announced last Tuesday that the yearly increase in the average cost of tuition at both public and private colleges is slowing up. The amount of financial aid available, however, went down slightly.

The reports released, titled Trends in College Pricing 2006 and Trends in Student Aid 2006 looked at current college prices in relationship to prices five years ago.,”

The steep slope of tuition costs may be leveling off, but it's not time to celebrate yet.

The College Board announced Oct. 24 that the yearly increase in the average cost of tuition at both public and private colleges is slowing down. The amount of financial aid available, however, went down slightly.

The reports, titled Trends in College Pricing 2006 and Trends in Student Aid 2006, looked at current college prices in relationship to prices five years ago. Overall, the average cost of college tuition is up 35 percent from what it was five years ago.

According to the reports, at public colleges, tuition on average went up 6.3 percent per year, while tuition at private colleges increased 5.9 percent per year.

The report on student aid stated that monetary assistance per student decreased in comparison to earlier in the decade.

"Financial aid depends on the resources individual universities have," said Charles Breeden, associate professor of economics. "It often increases after tuition has increased."

Last year, tuition at Marquette increased 7.5 percent, slightly higher than the national average.

"Each year the university assesses its costs and expenses and determines if tuition needs to go up," said Brigid O'Brien Miller, director of university communication. "These are things you need to invest in consistently because they constantly change."

O'Brien Miller said that each year increases in costs like health insurance for university employees, utilities and technology require a tuition increase to continue to attract and retain faculty, maintain academic programs and meet the needs of students.

Another factor is the number of students applying to colleges.

"The demand for college degrees is going up," Breeden said. "There is a large differential in favor of college graduates, as opposed to people who have only graduated from high school."

O'Brien Miller said that in comparison to other Jesuit institutions, Marquette's increase in tuition is below the average. Schools like Xavier University and Loyola University Chicago had tuition increases of about 10 percent.

"We work very hard to raise funds to make the education we provide affordable," O'Brien Miller said.

As for financial aid, O'Brien Miller said about 90 percent of Marquette undergraduate students get some form of financial aid, and the university gives approximately $60 million in aid annually.

Increases in college tuition could also be explained by the basic principles of business.

"The rules of supply and demand apply to higher education just as they would to a business," Breeden said. "If you have more people that want spaces than you have, you have to raise prices and academic standards."

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