According to the University of Tulsa, tuition is increasing next semester to $38,556 for the year. However, that price is only for the incoming freshmen. Continuing students will only see their tuition rise to $36,802, according to Earl Johnson, the Vice President for Enrollment Management and Student Services.
Johnson observed that “the rate of increase allows TU to maintain its position as one of the lowest-priced private universities among U.S. News and World Report’s Top 100 national universities and among our peer institutions.”
TU has an “overall operating budget of more than $200 million,” according to Kevan Buck, our Executive Vice President and Treasurer. “During the last fiscal year, student tuition covered just 37 percent of TU’s total budget.”
Of course, the increase in tuition causes problems for some students.
One TU sophomore, Luke Wagner, said, “It’s not breaking the bank, but it’s inconvenient. I have already maxed out my subsidized loans, so now I will have to take out more unsubsidized [loans and] will have to pay more interest earlier. Not only am I paying for TU, I’m paying for the money that I’m having to take out for TU.”
Rising tuition is common amongst private universities. College Board reports that, adjusting for inflation, tuition for private non-profit universities in Oklahoma has risen by about $6,000 on average over the past ten years.
Over the past 28 years, TU tuition has climbed from just over $10,000 (inflation-adjusted) to next fall’s cost of $38,000. Starting in the fall semester, tuition at the university will have risen by $10,000 (inflation-adjusted) since 2010.