Tuition increases at U of I campuses

Tuition at the University of Illinois at Springfield will be $3,701.25 per semester for full-time freshmen and transfer students enrolling for the first time this fall. The tuition for all three U of I campuses was approved today by the Board of Trustees at an Executive Committee meeting in Chicago.

The new rate is $93.75 more per semester than the rate paid by last fall’s new students and is the smallest increase in several years. The rate is guaranteed not to increase for four consecutive years after a student’s initial enrollment. Illinois’ public universities implemented a guaranteed tuition plan for all undergraduate students in 2004.

The increase amounts to 2.6 percent, which is equivalent over four years to a 1 percent annual increase.

In terms of per credit hour, the new rate is $246.75, only $6.25 more per credit hour compared to last year.

“The trustees felt a more modest tuition increase was appropriate at this time because of the troubled economy,” said UIS Chancellor Richard Ringeisen. “We want students and their parents to know that much consideration was given to the difficult circumstances the recession has created for so many people.”

The cost per credit hour for graduate students will increase to $266.25, a $10.25 per credit hour increase compared to last year.

Undergraduate students from Illinois living in a residence hall this fall at UIS will pay a total of $20,350.50 annually. That includes tuition of $7,402.50, fees of $2,288, room and board (Plan B), $9,400, and books/supplies/parking of $1,260.

Undergraduate students from Illinois living in an apartment will pay a total of $17,901.50 annually. That includes tuition of $7,402.50, fees of $2,288, room and board (Plan A) of $6,960, and books/supplies/parking of $1,260.

Ringeisen noted that UIS has a variety of needs on its campus, all centered on maintaining and enhancing academic quality. “Everything we do is designed to provide the best possible learning environment for our students. Strengthening academic quality is paramount followed by addressing facility operations needs and meeting inflationary and other essential cost increases,” he said.