MADISON, Wis. — The cost of tuition will go up by hundreds of dollars at Universities of Wisconsin schools under a plan passed by UW leaders on Thursday.
The UW Board of Regents voted to increase tuition by 5% at most campuses, saying the university system didn’t receive enough funding from the state this budget cycle and citing concerns about potential federal funding cuts.
“I think it’s a little unfair,” Ryan Lenertz, a junior studying statistics at UW-Madison, said. “I mean, somebody has to foot the bill, so I think you stick it on students and students will pay it because they want to go to school here.”
At the flagship UW-Madison campus, rates will increase by $500 for Wisconsin residents and more than $2,000 for students coming from out of state.
“It is a lot for me because I’m financially independent. So, it’s quite hard,” Nicholas Vang, a junior studying Korean language and culture at UW-Madison, said.
Regents estimate that the increased rates will bring in roughly $49 million in new revenue. The UW system is required to spend most of that money — around $30 million — to help fund employee pay raises passed in the state budget.
Watch: UW schools to see 5% tuition hike
UW has already lost millions to federal funding cuts and could lose tens of millions more if cuts to research grants and financial aid proposed by President Donald Trump’s administration go into effect.
The university system received a funding increase of roughly $256 million in the state budget passed earlier this month, most of which is dedicated to specific purposes. That increase fell far short of the more than $850 million university leaders had requested.
“Our public universities have become tuition-dependent due to lagging state funding in prior years, and the turnaround this budget cycle will help us continue providing educational opportunities to the next generation of Wisconsinites,” Universities of Wisconsin President Jay Rothman said.
See the full list of tuition increases at all UW campuses:
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