Sticker shock!

This morning, AHinks sent out an email to students explaining a 2.9% overall increase in tuition and fees, the smallest increase since 2000.  The email provides specific breakdown of full tuition, in keeping with an effort for more transparency.  Those lucky high school seniors who just got accepted can look forward to a total cost for tuition, fees, room, and board of $59,000.

The rise in tuition this year is seemingly organic and was approved using national economic data including the CPI, median family income measures, and home price indices.  There were no significant changes in policy, such as last year’s repeal of part-time tuition fees.

A portion of these increases comes from a hike in housing prices.  Multiple occupancy rooms will be $8,450, up from $8,240 (~2.5% increase); single rooms are $9,800 from $9,480 (~3.4%); and those magnificent studio single apartments will be $14,500, up from $12,000 (~20%!).  By Bwog’s math, single rooms are $1,090-$1,225/month (depending if you count winter break/May as a full month) for a bed, a desk, and several cubic square feet of free space–that is, if you can even get a room.  Here’s to hoping prices will go down once you get a roommate forced on you!

Dear Students,

We are writing to let you know that the Barnard Board of Trustees has
approved a modest increase in the College’s tuition and fees for
2013-14.  We know that any increase is difficult for many of our
families during these economic times, so we wanted to take a moment to
explain in detail the breakdown of the final numbers.

The overall increase is 2.9%, the smallest level of increase since
2000, and one that represents a slight slowing of the rate relative to
2012-13 (3.1%) and 2011-12 (3.9%).  The total cost for tuition, fees,
room and board for an incoming first-year student will be $59,000 for
the upcoming academic year.  Of that total, the components include:
$43,100 for tuition, $8,450 for a multiple room, $5,760 for unlimited
meal plan, and $1,960 for the comprehensive fee.

The price for multiple rooms will go up by 2.5% to $8,450 per year.
Rates for single rooms are increasing to $9,800 and rates for the few
studio apartments will increase to $14,500 per year. The remaining
fees are increasing by modest amounts and reflect changes in
underlying costs.

As noted at the Town Hall in February with the SGA Financial Advisory
Committee, in setting tuition, the College looks to a variety of
outside indicators including the national consumer price index (NCPI),
the Higher Education Price Index, and the median income of families
with heads of household between 45 and 54 (a cohort which best
represents families with college-age children). Since many families
also use home equity as a financing source for term bill payments, we
are tracking the national home price index, as well.

As was the case in 2012-13, student health insurance is no longer
included in the comprehensive fee charged to students. Students
covered through a family policy or other means can now waive coverage
under the College’s program with Aetna.  Approximately 60.5% of
Barnard students opted out of our insurance program last year.  For
students receiving financial aid without coverage from other sources,
the College includes the cost of the student health insurance in the
individual student’s packaging.

We hope that this gives you a clearer sense of the College’s tuition
plans for the coming year. The costs of providing the best possible
education for our students continue to rise, but we are trying our
best to keep the increase as low as possible while maintaining our
commitment to excellence.

Sincerely,

Gregory Brown, Chief Operating Officer
Avis Hinkson, Dean of the College

Bwog’s face on seeing this reminder of tuition prices via Shutterstock