University System of Georgia Chancellor Erroll Davis, left, and Georgia Board of Regents board members Willis Potts Jr., center, and Benjamin Tarbutton III, attend a monthly meeting in which the board raised tuition by three percent and increased fees Tuesday, April 19, 2011 in Atlanta, Ga. (AP Photo/David Goldman)DORIE TURNER, Associated Press
ATLANTA – Georgia college students will have to pay up to $450 more per semester in tuition and fees starting this fall under increases approved by the state Board of Regents on Tuesday.
The board voted to hike student costs to deal with a massive shortfall that stems from state budget cuts, skyrocketing enrollment and dried-up federal stimulus money. The state’s 35 colleges and universities are set to lose $346 million in funding for the fiscal year starting July 1, sending the state’s per-student funding levels back to 1994 levels.
Tuition will increase 3 percent – or between $36 and $106 per semester, depending on where students attend. In addition, students will pay hundreds more in fees for everything from athletics to technology.
A full-time student at the University of Georgia will pay $3,641 per semester this fall, plus $1,095 in fees. A student at University of West Georgia student will pay $929 in fees and $2,367 in tuition.