Minnesota State students face likely 3.5% tuition increase

Josh Verges, Pioneer Press
·2 min read

Almost every Minnesota State college and university is expected to increase tuition by 3.5 percent next year, system officials said Tuesday.

Budgets aren’t due to the system office till next week, but Bill Maki, vice chancellor of finance and facilities, said almost every campus plans to raise tuition by the maximum allowed by the Legislature.

Leaders of the public higher education system asked lawmakers to pay for a tuition freeze next year, but Maki said there was little interest.

The 3.5 percent figure happens to match what University of Minnesota President Joan Gabel has proposed for the Twin Cities and Rochster campuses, while Duluth, Morris and Crookston want 1.75 percent. Unlike Minnesota State, the U’s tuition increases are not constrained by the Legislature.

Maki said the cost of student housing and meal plans will go up by more than usual next year — 3.7 percent on average, he said, or $344.

The average annual cost of a 3.5 percent tuition hike would be $289 for Minnesota State universities and $185 for colleges.

Winona State University President Scott Olson told the Minnesota State Board of Trustees on Tuesday that next year’s incoming class is on track to be 15 percent larger. But prices are rising fast on library materials, he said, and the university is looking to increase wages for student workers so those jobs don’t go unfilled.

“Inflation is a big worry,” he said.

Joe Mulford, president of Pine Technical and Community College, said his school is “an expensive place” because it’s heavy on career and technical courses. Unlike other schools, Pine Tech’s enrollment has been strong, he said, but it hasn’t been enough to offset the rising cost of supplies.

Minnesota State system enrollment has fallen for 11 consecutive years. In just the last two years, its colleges have lost 13 percent of their students and universities 10 percent, Maki said.

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