State shifts burden of college costs further onto families

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State shifts burden of college costs further onto families

Posted: Thursday, July 31, 2014 11:27 am | Updated: 11:39 am, Thu Jul 31, 2014.

By Karin Kapsidelis | Richmond Times-Dispatch

Next school year might just be one of the least affordable years for a family trying to support a student at a public four-year university.

Virginia undergraduates will pay an average increase of 5.2 percent in tuition and all mandatory fees, or $544 more, for the coming academic year, the State Council of Higher Education for Virginia reported Wednesday.

In Western Virginia, Virginia Tech students will face a 4.9 percent increase, while Radford University students will pay 4.3 percent more, James Madison students will pay 5.3 percent more and Virginia Military Institute cadets will see a 7.7 percent increase.

With room and board, the average total cost of attendance will be $20,291, a 4.4 percent increase costing $864 more, at state-supported universities.

Tuition changes

Tuition changes

2014-15 in-state undergraduate tuition and all mandatory fees, with increase over previous year:

George Mason University: $10,382 (4.8% increase, or $474 more)
Old Dominion University: $9,250 (4.9%, $430)
University of Virginia: $12,998 (4.3%, $540)
Virginia Commonwealth University: $12,398 (3.3%, $396)
Virginia Tech: $12,017 (4.9%, $562)
College of William and Mary: $17,656 (14.2% for freshmen and transfer students, $2,193)
Christopher Newport University: $11,646 (5.0%, $554)
U.Va.-Wise: $8,868 (4.2%, $359)
James Madison University: $9,662 (5.3%, $486)
Longwood University: $11,580 (2.1%, $240)
University of Mary Washington: $10,252 (6.1%, $592)
Norfolk State University: $7,452 (3.1%, $226)
Radford University: $9,360 (4.3%, $384)
Virginia Military Institute: $15,518 (7.7%, $1,114)
Virginia State University: $8,002 (2.8%, $218)
Richard Bland College: $5,058 (25.8%, $1,038)
Virginia Community College System: $4,080 (4.6%, $180)

— State Council of Higher Education for Virginia