Students at University of Tennessee System schools will see a tuition increase for the 2024-25 academic year after approval from the board of trustees.
Tuition at the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga will increase 3%, according to a news release.
In-state and out-of-state students will be charged the same tuition increase percentage.
The system’s four other campuses will also see increases:
— Southern: 4%
— Martin: 3.5%
— Health Science Center: 2.9%
— Knoxville: 2.4%
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UTC also raised its tuition by 3% last year after not raising it for the 2022-23 year, with a five-year average increase of 1.6%, according to Chuck Wasserstrom, director of communications at UTC.
“Three percent is a reasonable increase considering tuition has lagged inflation,” Wasserstrom said in an email.
The increase amounts to $304 per year for each student.
The additional funds will be used for various things on UTC’s campus, Wasserstrom said. Those include increasing merit scholarships, a new program to support first-year students’ success, expanding the nursing and physical therapy program, creating a new management Master of Science program, expanding recruiting efforts and helping students find affordable off-campus housing.
The board of trustees increased tuition across the universities to help support programs, increase salaries for employees, meet needs for the campus, offer scholarships and provide some improvement and support for student programs, according to a news release. System President Randy Boyd, whose employment has been extended to 2030, compared the rise in tuition to other universities and colleges rising at a higher rate.
“The public universities across the state have announced increases of 5.25%, so we are actually more competitive than the other campuses with this increase,” he said at the meeting, according to the Knoxville News Sentinel.
The board of trustees also approved other fees: IT will charge $60, transportation will add $40 to a student’s tuition bill, as well as $44 for online learning experiences. Changes to the admission policy were made and voted on as well.
Contact Alexis Dewey at adewey@timesfreepress.com.