| Since the early 1980's, college prices have been rising steadily, at two to three times the Consumer Price Index (CPI). Since 1980, through this year, after adjusting for inflation, the average tuition of the nation's 4-yr public institutions has increased by nearly 128%. For the private 4-year institutions, tuition prices have increased by over 130%. The College Board reports that private college tuition rose most sharply in the early and mid 1980's, while public tuition increase most in the late 1980's and early 1990's. These trends have continued into the 2000’s. | |
| The College Board also provided regional analyses of college costs. Their findings indicated that the Southwest offers the lowest tuition rates at both private and public 4-year institutions ($12,708 and $3,170 respectively). New England has the highest rates, averaging $22,189 at 4-year privates and $4,892 at 4-year publics. The average cost for a 4-year private institution in the Midwest region is less than the average cost for 4-year privates in all other regions, save for the South and Southwest. Additionally, adjusted for inflation, Midwest 4-year private institutions have posted the smallest percentage increases in tuition rates over the last 10 years, save for New England. | |
Four-Year Private Institution Average Tuition Rates by Geographic Region
| 1991-92 Tuition | 2001-02 Tuition | 10 yr % change | |
| National | $12,601 | $17,123 | 35.9% |
| New England Region | $16,895 | $22,189 | 31.3% |
| Middle States | $13,159 | $18,459 | 40.3% |
| South | $10,821 | $14,688 | 35.7% |
| Midwest | $12,130 | $16,046 | 32.3% |
| Southwest | $9,013 | $12,708 | 41.0% |
| West | $12,481 | $16,558 | 32.7% |
College Participation and Degree Value
| The College Board reports that, combined with stagnant family income over the past 20 years, trends in college tuition present serious problems for low- and moderate-income families. While college participation rates have increased for all income quartiles, much higher rates of participation are evident from individuals coming from higher income backgrounds. Without assistance, private higher education has become out of the reach of lower income families. |  |
| While student aid has increased in total value (College Board reported estimated that a record $74.4 billion in student financial aid was available last year), this increase is not enough to keep pace with the rise in tuition, and most of the growth in aid has been in the form of student borrowing. Yet the importance of a college degree on potential earnings becomes clear when one considers that the median household income for a holder of a bachelor’s degree is over $20K more than that for a high school graduate, and nearly $20K more for a person with some college, but no degree. |  |
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DePaul versus Local and National Private Universities
| Nationally, the average cost of a private college education rose by 5.5% from 2000-01 to 2001-02. This increase was over twice the rate of inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which rose 2.6% for the twelve-month period ending in August 2001. DePaul’s tuition for continuing students rose by 4.9% during this time. Many experts attribute the fact that college costs outpace inflation to increasing faculty salaries and the increased costs of technological upgrading. |  |
| Among the private and National competitors, increases ranged from 3.0% (Loyola University) to 8.0% (Elmhurst College) and 12.8% (Santa Clara University). The median increase was approximately 5.1% for Illinois Privates and 6.6% for National Catholic institutions. For our cross-applicant and cross-admission competitors, increases ranged from 1.8% (University of Michigan) to over 14% (University of Wisconsin), with the typical increase being approximately 4.9%. |  |
College and Program Comparisons
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Undergraduate Comparisons Tables 8a-f display tuition rate comparisons for the cross-admission competitors of each of DePaul's undergraduate colleges. Projected 4-year average costs for Music and Theatre competitors are compared to the guaranteed rates in each school. Given the number of in-state, public competitors, DePaul appears to be the more expensive alternative. However, annual increases at DePaul tend to be smaller than those seen for competitor institutions. |
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Law Comparisons Tables 9a and 9b display the Day and Evening J.D. program (respectively) tuition rates for DePaul and several comparison institutions. As is evident from the /scripts/images/pricing/2001/figure, DePaul's tuition rates and annual increases mirror those seen among the other institutions. DePaul tends to be less expensive that the private institutions on the list, but more expensive than the public institutions. |
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Graduate Comparisons Tables 10, 11, and 12 display the per course tuition rates for Commerce, Education, and CTI (respectively) competitor institutions. As can be seen in the /scripts/images/pricing/2001/figure to the left, DePaul's rates are on a par with the average rate being charged among competitors. For Commerce and Education, DePaul's tuition increases have been considerably smaller than those seen for competitors. |
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