The university announced a tuition increase of $1,960 for the 2018-’19 academic year, raising the tuition by nearly 5 percent, according to a news brief released Nov. 20.
The increase, approved by the Board of Trustees, will hike the tuition from its current $39,330 to $41,290. This is the largest tuition increase in recent years. According to archived news briefs, the tuition increased $1,280 for the 2016-’17 academic year and $1,330 for the 2017-’18 academic year.
Despite recent increases, this is not the largest tuition increase in university history, university spokesperson Chris Jenkins said in an email.
“Marquette sets its tuition for undergraduate and graduate programs after making a thorough evaluation of our costs and efficiencies,” Jenkins said.
Drew Foren, a sophomore in the College of Engineering, said he works to help pay for the majority of his current tuition.
“(It’s) a big jump, and if it keeps going up at this rate, it will become harder to afford,” he said. “I think with coming close to $2,000, it’s really starting to get a bit more noticeable for me personally.”
The tuition announcement came earlier than usual this year due to Marquette’s change to rolling admissions. In previous years, tuition rates were announced in January.
Matt Yazbak, a junior in the College of Business Administration, said his parents pay for half of his tuition, and he pays for the other half.
“I’m going to have to work more, get a part-time job or job over the summer,” he said. “(The tuition increase will) definitely make a difference, especially when you want to do unpaid internships.”
The 2018-’19 changes also include the following: A per-credit increase of $30 in the Graduate School and Graduate School of Management, a per-credit increase of $20 for graduate students in the College of Education, a separate tuition increase of $1,040 for students in the School of Dentistry and a separate tuition increase of $670 for full-time students in Marquette Law School.
These programs have all experienced hikes over the past couple academic years as well, according to archived news briefs.
The per-credit increase in the Graduate School and Graduate School of Management went up $5 from the past couple academic years. Meanwhile, the tuition increases for the School of Dentistry and Law School are not as large as the two previous academic years.
Although tuition will increase, more financial aid will be given to next year’s students, University President Michael Lovell said in the Nov. 20 news brief.
Lovell said Marquette will supply more than $150 million in financial aid to students for 2018-‘19, the highest amount ever provided.
“That would definitely help balance back the situation and make it more manageable,” Yazbak said. “I want to be focusing on my classes and future as much as possible and not having to worry about getting a job.”
In 2015-’16, 100 percent of Marquette freshmen received financial aid, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. During 2016-’17, 99 percent of freshmen received financial aid. This aid included grants, scholarships, work-study and low-interest loans.
In a letter sent to parents, the university said they are increasing the faculty salary pool in order to acquire “world-class faculty.” The letter thanked parents for the sacrifices they make to invest in their children’s education.
The letter said the Board of Trustees considers tuition prices of comparable schools when deciding tuition increases. Marquette is ranked 18 highest out of 28 for tuition cost among Catholic and Jesuit peer institutions in the U.S., according to the news brief.
John Pantaleo • Nov 28, 2017 at 9:44 pm
This is absolutely insane and no one bats an eye. The school rationalized the increase by basically saying other Jesuit schools are more expensive. Please tell me how that justifies raising tuition this much. “Hey other schools are more expensive, therefore we’re raising our tuition by 5%.” This is effectively what happened and no one cares. An increase of almost $2,000 per student is out of control and the justification for it is a facade. First off, a tuition raise of 2,000 each represents an increase of over 16 million dollars for the school. You’re trying to tell me that is what is needed to acquire “world-class faculty? It is just ridiculous. The school has no essence of a budget and continues to irresponsibly spend our money, but that seems to be okay because they will just raise tuition for us. Not to mention the school is also going to be using this additional money to expand the campus and gentrify the west side which is an ethical dilemma in itself. I think a dialogue needs to be started about all of this because we as the students cannot allow this to continue to happen. If anyone has any thoughts on this I would be intrigued to hear them. ([email protected])