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The Board of Trustees has announced a 4.5 percent tuition increase for the 2005-06 academic year, which will bring tuition rate to an all-time high of $31,562.
The total cost of a Tufts education, including room, board and other required fees, will come to over $40,000 for the very first time for the typical student living on-campus and subscribing to a meal plan.
Administrators say tuition is increasing at a smaller rate, due in part to recent years' successful fundraising efforts and alumni-outreach programs. The previous tuition increase for the current academic year was 4.5 percent, decided upon in February, and the rise for the 2002-03 school year was 4.9 percent.
Last year, the Tufts Telefund raised a record-breaking $2.3 million for all the University's schools and plans to take in $2.5 million by the end of the 2005 fiscal year.
In an effort to alleviate the economic stresses of tuition and other education-related expenses, the University will continue to increase the amount of financial aid available.
Speaking on behalf of President Larry Bacow, Executive Vice President Steven Manos said the tuition increase should be taken in context - next year undergraduate aid will rise by seven percent.
According to the 2003-04 Tufts Factbook, University-sponsored financial aid covered 35 percent of total tuition owed by all students between 2002 and 2004.
Manos said the recent tuition increase at Tufts is "relatively moderate" compared to other schools' and "are necessary in order to stay competitive with other schools."
Students are also feeling the brunt, however, of room and board costs and the mandatory health service and activity fees, which have increased every year for the past decade. The cost of textbooks, transportation and other expenses has also been on the rise nationally.
But Tufts students aren't the only ones to face consistent tuition increases - many of Tufts' peer institutions, such as Cornell and Harvard, also increase tuition every year.
At Cornell, students pay $30,107 in tuition and student activity fees, and recent trends suggest tuition will increase at a rate of five percent for the next academic year.
The current tuition for Harvard undergraduates is $27,448, an increase of 5.2 percent over last year. Harvard students benefit from financial aid packages that cover, on average, $28,500 or approximately 70 percent of the average student's total costs.
Former Executive Administrative Dean Wayne Bouchard told the Daily in February that Tufts is largely "tuition dependent" - tuition and fees cover 81 percent of the budget. The remaining 19 percent of the University's budget is funded by the endowment, the capital campaign and the Tufts Annual Fund.
Despite the Tufts' relatively small endowment - currently about $700 million - administrators say they are committed to keeping a Tufts education affordable.
Manos said the University's plan to adopt need-blind admissions is an "extremely important [goal of] President Bacow; he is intent on raising money to support financial aid [programs]."
Despite the goals on the part of administrators, some students say need-based aid will not solve all undergraduates' financial difficulties in attending Tufts.
"Need-based financial aid helps out students from lower economic classes, but leaves students of middle- and upper-class families with the prospect of six-figure debts," sophomore Chad Matlin said.
Matlin said a merit based financial aid system would be much better. In such a system, "[students] would have more control [over how much aid they get]."
- Daniela Perdomo contributed to this article.
