For the first time in at least 40 years, The Ohio State University would institute a comprehensive freeze on costs for in-state students, under a plan President Dr. Michael V. Drake announced.
Drake’s plan, which will be presented to the Board of Trustees for its approval in June, would freeze rates on in-state tuition, mandatory fees, housing, dining and all undergraduate program, course and learning technology fees on the Columbus campus.
“With this step, we can offer some financial relief for the nearly 80 percent of our students who are from Ohio,” Drake said. “Ohio State is proud to be a national leader on college affordability, but we can do even more.”
Drake’s investiture speech on March 31 laid out his vision on access, affordability and excellence at Ohio State. It included a five-year plan to increase need-based scholarship funding by at least $100 million, starting with a $15 million increase that will be provided to low- and middle-income students this fall.
Ohio State has frozen in-state tuition and mandatory fees since the 2012-13 academic year at $10,037 per year. As a result, many students who began that year would graduate next year paying the same rate.
“The unique opportunity to freeze in-state costs is rare and we are clear that it may not be possible for everyone, but Ohio State is in a position to do so this year while continuing to invest in the quality of our academic mission,” said Drake. “In everything we do, we will measure the steps we take against our commitment to elevate continually the high level of excellence that defines Ohio State for our faculty, students and staff.”
“In addition to increasing support for our students, efficiencies and innovative funding will provide the support we need to attract and retain the best minds, provide world-class education, and produce world-changing research.”
For instance, Ohio State will be redirecting up to $17 million from administrative units to our colleges and scholarships in the coming academic year.
As a land-grant institution, Ohio State is particularly focused on affordability for Ohio residents while maintaining competitive pricing for nonresidents and international students.
The in-state freeze on undergraduate tuition and mandatory fees will also extend to the university’s regional campuses in Lima, Mansfield, Marion and Newark, as well as the Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster. For nonresidents, tuition and mandatory fees will increase 3.5 percent.
For out-of-state students at the Columbus campus, the cost of tuition will increase 3.1 percent in the 2015-16 academic year to $27,362. Even with that change, Ohio State will remain among the least expensive schools in the Big Ten.
In the 2014-15 academic year, Ohio State was third most affordable for out-of-state tuition and fees among the Big Ten.
International students pay a higher cost for tuition and fees because their families do not pay federal taxes that support programs such as Pell Grants, federal student loans and research grants.
Current international students will pay 3 percent more than they did in the past academic year because they’ll have the same dollar increase as out-of-state students. Their tuition and mandatory fees will total $28,362 in 2015-16.
New international students will be charged a higher differential, so their tuition and mandatory fees will total $29,302. That’s a 6.4 percent increase over the current international rate.
Tuition and fees for graduate and professional programs are set at market rates.
The Board of Trustees will vote on this plan at the June meeting. Rates will not be official until they have been approved by the Board.
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