• Introduction
• Tuition and Required Fees at Postsecondary Institutions
• Room and Board Charges
• Changes in Institutional Charges From 1993-94 to 1998-99
• Changes in Room and Board Charges From 1993-94 to 1998-99
• Overall Changes From 1993-94 to 1998-99

This report presents detailed tabulations for the 1998-99 academic year that describe characteristics of the 9,653 postsecondary education institutions in the United States (50 states and the District of Columbia) and outlying areas (table A).¹  These characteristics include tuition and required fees for undergraduate, graduate, and first-professional programs and room and board charges at institutions providing these accommodations. Data are from the "Institutional Characteristics Survey," a component of the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) of the U.S. Department of Education's National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). This report also provides a comparison between 1993-94 and 1998-99 tuition, required fees, and room and board charges for the 50 states and the District of Columbia.

Postsecondary education is the provision of a formal instructional program whose curriculum is designed primarily for students who are beyond the compulsory age for high school. This includes programs whose purpose is academic, vocational, and continuing professional education, and excludes avocational (leisure) and adult basic education programs. For the 1998-99 academic year, 9,485 institutions in the 50 states and the District of Columbia and 168 in the outlying areas fit the IPEDS definition (table A). IPEDS attempts every year to identify institutions that should be included in the universe. Because of the changing nature of the postsecondary education enterprise ("births" and "deaths" of institutions), there may be more than the 9,653 postsecondary institutions currently identified in IPEDS.

In 1998-99, IPEDS collected data from over 9,600 post-secondary institutions, with more than 6,500, or 68 per-cent, of the institutions having a Program Participation Agreement (PPA) with the Department of Education and thus eligible to participate in Title IV programs. Title IV of the Higher Education Act of 1965 (as amended) established federal financial aid programs (e.g., Pell Grants, Stafford Loans) for students attending postsecondary institutions. Students attending institutions with a PPA may be eligible either to receive Title IV funds or to defer repayment of their loans.

The IPEDS universe also classifies institutions by degree-granting status. Institutions are considered degree-granting if they offer at least one associate's or higher degree. In 1998-99, almost 4,600, or 48 percent, of all IPEDS institutions granted degrees. Forty-three percent of the postsecondary institutions in IPEDS were Title IV participating and degree-granting in the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and outlying areas.

Table A.-The number of postsecondary institutions, by degree-granting status, Title IV participation, and control of institution: 50 states, District of Columbia, and outlying areas, academic year 1998-99

The tuition and required fees discussed in this report represent all responding institutions that offer either undergraduate, graduate, or first-professional programs² and enroll full-time students. The nonresponding institutions and institutions that report tuition and fees by pro-gram only are not included in this report. It is important to note that tuition and required fees do not represent the total cost to attend college. Excluded are costs for books and supplies, social activities, and room and board.

Table B.-Average institutional charges for tuition and required fees for full-time, full-year students at all postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: 50 states and the District of Columbia, academic year 1998-99

In 1998-99, there were 2,279 public postsecondary institutions in the 50 states, District of Columbia, and outlying areas (table A). Of the 2,279 institutions, 645 offered bachelor's or higher degrees, while 1,269 offered programs of at least 2 but less than 4 years' duration. Of the responding 4-year institutions, 596 institutions in the 50 states and the District of Columbia reported tuition and required fees averaging $3,186 for full-time, full-year³  undergraduate in-state students in 1998-99 (table B). The median charge was $2,998 for undergraduate in-state students. The public 4-year institutions continued to charge lower tuition and required fees for students attending schools in states where they were legal residents. The full-time, full-year out-of-state undergraduate students at these same institutions paid an average of $8,248 for tuition and required fees. The full-time, full-year graduate tuition and required fees averaged $3,555 for in-state and $8,310 for out-of-state students at the 511 responding public 4-year institutions.

The 1,173 responding public 2-year institutions reported that in-state students attending their institutions were charged an average of $1,697 for tuition and required fees (table B). Out-of-state students attending these same institutions were charged an average of $4,006, a difference of $2,309. There were 158 responding less-than-2-year institutions, with average tuition and fees for in-state students of $2,809 for 1998-99, compared to $3,479 for out-of-state students.

For the purpose of IPEDS, private institutions are defined as educational institutions controlled by a private individual(s) or by a nongovernmental agency, usually supported primarily by other than public funds and operated by other than publicly elected or appointed officials. There are two types of private institutions in IPEDS: for-profit and not-for-profit. This report discusses these two types of institutions separately.

The charge for full-time, full-year undergraduate students to attend 4-year private not-for-profit institutions in 1998-99 averaged $11,229 for tuition and required fees (table B). Since very few private institutions charge different out-of-state tuition, the charge for out-of-state undergraduates averaged $11,246, just $17 more than the charge for in-state students. The median charge was $11,173 for in-state and $11,180 for out-of-state undergraduate students, only a $7 difference. The median charge for out-of-state graduate students was higher at public institutions ($8,046) than at private not-for-profit institutions ($7,630) or private for-profit institutions ($7,440). In fact, the median charge for out-of-state graduate students at private for-profit institutions was more than $600 lower than at public institutions, and the median charge was more than $400 lower at private not-for-profit institutions than at public institutions.

The room charges are reported by academic year for rooming accommodations for a typical student sharing a room with one other student. In 1998-99, 433 public 4-year institutions in the 50 states and the District of Columbia reported an average of $2,338 for room charges to students and 176 public 2-year institutions reported an average of $1,395 (table C). The 21 private for-profit 4-year institutions that reported offering dormitory facilities charged an average of $3,531. Over 1,000 private not-for-profit institutions reported having dormitory facilities, with an average charge of $2,599 at 4-year institutions and $1,918 at 2-year institutions.

The board charges are reported for an academic year for a specified number of meals per week. Of the responding institutions, 1,457 indicated they offer meals (table C). The average charge for all institutions offering meal plans was $2,150 for an average of 18 meals per week. Charges for a student attending a 4-year private not-for-profit institution were an average of $2,363 for 19 meals per week.

Table C.-Average institutional charges for room and board for full-time, full-year students at all postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: 50 states and the District of Columbia, academic year 1998-99

Between 1993-94 and 1998-99, there was a 33 percent increase (from $4,647 to $6,180) in the average charge of undergraduate tuition and required fees for in-state students at postsecondary institutions (table D). In 1998-99, in-state undergraduate students at public 4-year institutions paid an average of $3,186 for tuition and required fees, a 29 percent rise from 1993-94, when the average was $2,479. Although the average tuition and fees charged by public 4-year institutions increased, the rate of increase was slightly less than that for private 4-year institutions. The in-state undergraduate students at private not-for-profit 4-year institutions paid an average of $11,229 in 1998-99, up 33 percent from $8,419 in 1993-94, and students attending for-profit 4-year institutions paid 30 percent more in 1998-99.

The largest increase impacting the in-state undergraduate tuition and required fees was at 2-year private not-for-profit institutions. The in-state students attending these institutions in 1998-99 paid an average of 51 percent more than those who attended in 1993-94 ($5,489 vs. $3,624). The median charge at these institutions rose 87 percent from 1993-94 to 1998-99 ($3,000 to $5,600).

Tuition and fees for in-state graduate students increased 31 percent over the 5-year period, from an average of $5,417 in 1993-94 to $7,076 in 1998-99. The for-profit institutions reported the largest increase, 43 percent during this period.

The average dormitory charge for students attending postsecondary institutions showed a 28 percent increase over the 5-year period ($1,873 vs. $2,400) (table E). The private for-profit 4-year institutions reported an average increase of 27 percent and a median increase of 41 percent from 1993-94 to 1998-99 for dormitory charges for all students. The private 4-year not-for-profit institutions reported an average charge of $2,037 in 1993-94 and $2,599 in 1998-99, a 28 percent increase over this period.

Postsecondary institutions reported an average charge of $2,150 for meal plans at their institutions in 1998-99. This was 17 percent higher than the charges assessed in 1993-94, when the average charge was $1,835 for meal plans. The public 4-year institutions charged an average of $1,622 for meal plans in 1993-94, which increased 19 percent to $1,934 in 1998-99. The average charge for meal plans at public 2-year institutions was $1,612 in 1998-99, up 10 percent from $1,463 in 1993-94 (table E).

Over the 5-year period from 1993-94 to 1998-99, the average total institutional charges (tuition, required fees, room and board) for an undergraduate student to attend college increased 25 percent at public 4-year institutions ($5,969 to $7,458) for those paying in-state tuition. The average total institutional charges for out-of-state students increased 27 percent during this same period ($9,856 to $12,520). At private institutions, the average total price for undergraduates increased 30 percent at 4-year not-for-profit institutions ($12,482 to $16,191) and approximately 29 percent⁴ at 4-year for-profit institutions.

Table D.-Average institutional charges for tuition and required fees for full-time, full-year students at all postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: 50 states and the District of Columbia, academic years 1993-94 and 1998-99

Table E.-Average institutional charges for room and board for full-time, full-year students at all postsecondary institutions, by level and control of institution: 50 states and the District of Columbia, academic years 1993-94 and 1998-99