Wesleyan Tuition Increase Smallest in at Least 3 Decades

At its March meeting, Wesleyan’s Board of Trustees voted to increase tuition and residential comprehensive fees by 2.9 percent for the 2013-14 academic year, a rise equal to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) rate of inflation.

This increase is significantly less than those for recent years, which have ranged from 3.8 percent to 5.0 percent.

“We are committed to reining in over time the price of a Wesleyan education and to meeting the full financial need of students who enroll,” said Wesleyan President Michael Roth. “By tying tuition increases to the rate of inflation, we are seeking to moderate the growth of costs in keeping with the goal of affordability.”

Wesleyan also is offering students the option of graduating in three years, saving families around $50,000 on their total tuition bill while retaining Wesleyan’s core academic experience.

Financial aid is a key component of affordability, and next year Wesleyan will spend approximately one-third of its tuition revenue, or $50 million, on need-based scholarship support. Raising funds for additional scholarships is also the top priority for Wesleyan’s $400 million fundraising campaign, announced publicly March 1. To date, Wesleyan has raised $283 million toward that goal.

For the 2013-14 academic year, tuition will be $46,674 for all students. The residential comprehensive fee will be $12,940 for freshmen and sophomores, and $14,710 for juniors and seniors. Including the student activity fee, the total student charges will be $59,884 for freshmen and sophomores, and $61,654 for juniors and seniors.