Report: Tufts Most Expensive College in State

– Allison Goldsberry

Tufts University is the state’s most expensive school and is the twentieth most expensive school in the country, according to the Tufts Daily.

The Daily, Tufts’ daily newspaper, cites a recent report in the Chronicle of Higher Education. Tufts has joined nearly sixty schools nationwide and nine schools in Massachusetts that charge over $50,000 per year in tuition, room, board, and fees.

According to the Daily, Tufts costs $51,088 for the 2009-2010 academic year.

Senior Chronicle reporter Scott Carlson told the Daily that $50,000 is just a mark that has been surpassed with ever-increasing college costs.

“The $50,000 mark is an artificial mark because everything is going up in price all the time,” Carlson told the Daily. “So naturally … a lot more colleges will become this expensive.”

Kim Thurler, Tufts’ Public Relations Director, said that Tufts’ cost is not inconsistent with what it considers its peer institutions.

“Tufts’ costs are generally in line with other private universities and colleges” such as Boston College, Washington University in St. Louis and Georgetown, Wesleyan and Cornell Universities. [T]hese cost differences are often not very large,” Thurler told the Daily.

Tufts President Lawrence Bacow told the Daily in a recent interview that the school is expensive for three reasons: small classes, a relatively small endowment and for its engineering school.

“We know how to make a Tufts education less expensive. It’s pretty simple: bigger classes, less student-faculty contact, less hands-on learning, less support for student life, less support for Student Services, less support for Career Services,” President Bacow said.

According to a CNNMoney.com report, college costs have “skyrocketed” over the past thirty years. The average 4-year private college costs $35,636 per year while the average public, in-state college costs $15,213. The report cites more high school graduates looking to attend college, shrinking endowments, and decreases in state funding as some of the reasons why costs are rising.

The cost to attend Tufts rose 3.5% over last year, the smallest increase in 45 years. Last year’s costs rose 5.3% over the previous year. According to President Bacow, Tufts increased its financial aid by 12% this year since more students are in need. About 40% of Tufts students receive financial aid, with an average award of $27,000, according to the Daily.