Posted: 3/22/2010
Tuition for full-time undergraduates at The Johns Hopkins University will increase 3.9 percent this fall, the second consecutive increase below 4 percent.
“Johns Hopkins understands that this has been a very difficult time,” President Ronald J. Daniels said, “and we have worked hard to recognize the challenges faced by many students and families in a recessionary economy while balancing the fiscal challenges confronting the university.”
The increase, amounting to $1,530, will bring tuition for the 2010-2011 academic year to $40,680 for the nearly 5,000 full-time undergraduates in the university’s Krieger School of Arts and Sciences and the Whiting School of Engineering. The increase will be the second smallest in percentage terms for those schools in 36 years, since the 1974-1975 academic year. The only smaller percentage increase was 3.8 percent this year.
The 3.9 percent increase also applies to students in the university’s two smaller schools with full-time undergraduates. The 2010-2011 tuition for more than 340 undergraduate musicians at the Peabody Conservatory will be $35,600, an increase of $1,350. The School of Nursing, with more than 350 full-time undergrads, will increase tuition for students in the traditional track by $1,245, to $33,165. Tuition for the 13-month accelerated track will be $62,223, an increase of $2,336.
While holding down tuition, the university has made commitments to continue to build its financial aid budgets. Aid for undergraduates in the Krieger and Whiting schools will increase this fall by 11.3 percent, or $6.2 million, to a total of $61.1 million. Peabody’s aid budget will rise 5 percent and the School of Nursing expects to provide a significant increase in financial aid dollars as well.
Some of the university’s non-tuition sources of revenue — particularly earnings on the endowment and Maryland’s Sellinger Program supporting independent colleges and universities — have been cut significantly during the recession. Because of a decline in state revenues, for instance, this fiscal years appropriated Sellinger aid was cut more than 25 percent after the year began.
Other revenue sources, such as philanthropy and federal research support, remain uncertain for the foreseeable future. Despite the difficult times, Daniels said, the university remains committed to two critical priorities: maintaining academic excellence and providing financial aid to students whose talent and hard work have earned them a Johns Hopkins education but who cannot afford one.
“We cannot and will not compromise on either the quality of the educational experience or on our commitment to open that experience to students no matter their economic background,” Daniels said.
Vincent Amoroso, director of the Office of Student Financial Services at the university’s Homewood campus, said that, for many undergraduates, financial aid reduces the actual cost of attending Johns Hopkins to well below the “sticker price.”
“This year, about 40 percent of Homewood undergraduates received need-based grants from university sources, averaging $28,266 per student,” Amoroso said.
Room and board charges for the upcoming year for Krieger and Whiting students at the Homewood campus will increase 3.9 percent, from $6,882 to $7,150 for a typical residence hall room and from $5,158 to $5,360 for the anytime dining meal plan. Room charges for Peabody students will be $5,800 for a double room, up 7.4 percent from this year’s $5,400. The anytime meal plan will be $5,900, up 3.5 percent from this years $5,700.
Tuition increases for next year in other Johns Hopkins degree programs vary widely, ranging from no increase to up to 10.1 percent, depending on the nature of the program and where it is offered. For a complete listing of 2010-2011 Johns Hopkins undergraduate and graduate tuition rates, go to http://tinyurl.com/JHUtuition.