<p>Just in case you want to know how much it will be next year:</p>
<p>Trustees</a> approve tuition for 2011-12 | News Center | Wake Forest University</p>
<p>Of course - housing and meal plan rates vary by selection. I noticed that the amounts for tuition are slightly different between these 2 pieces.</p>
<p>This tuition increase happens in the context of careful restraints on spending" said President Nathan O. Hatch.</p>
<p>"For the second year in a row, the university has kept the rate of cost increases below 4 percent. "
“Housing costs for all residence halls will rise by 5.6 percent.”</p>
<p>Over the last 12 months,the US inflation index increased 1.5 percent.</p>
<p>Good thing WF is showing restraint with a tuition increase almost 3 times the rate of inflation and housing cost increase of almost 4 times the rate of inflation!</p>
<p>Think about that when you are fighting for your financial aid , and full pay families will bear the biggest burden(it’s ok the rich can afford it!)</p>
<p>How long before all in cost reaches $100, 000.00 per year?</p>
<p>56 grand per year for college… craziness.</p>
<p>As a “poor full payer” this sucks.</p>
<p>No doubt the COA will cross the $60,000 mark for 2012-13. My son loves Wake - but the cost really is out of control.</p>
<p>Wow. That’s unbelievable. UNC here I come.</p>
<p>My D has applied to Wake—not sure if she will get in, but assuming she does, her (our) decision to go is obviously going to be impacted by the cost. I suspect that she will not get any merit based aid, and we are not likley to be elligible for any need-based aid. I am fine on both points–she is a good, solid student but likely not equal to the best students that attend Wake, and while we are not rich, we are solidly upper-middle class, and I am certain there are more families with a greater financial need than ours. Having said all that, D has been accepted into a number of smaller liberal arts colleges (certainly not as well known as Wake, and some might reasonably argue, that they do not have the same academic reputation either). But in order to attract sudents like my D, they are rather generous with merit based aid. The average net costs (after merit based aid) for tuition and room/board at threee schools she has been accepted into so far is about $26,5000/year. Compare that to Wake’s approximately $54,000 per year. I think people can very reasonably say that Wake is a better school than three my daughter got into, and that it has a beautiful campus, Div 1 sports, etc—all true. But I really can’t see how Wake is twice as good. I think my daughter can get an equivalent (or very nearly equivalent) education at the schools she go into, and at the end, we have more than $100,000 left in our pockets. Its really hard for me to see how anyone can justify going to Wake if they have to pay full freight. But, I may be putting the wagon before the horse–she has not even got in yet.</p>
<p>ONLY raising tuition twice the rate of inflation. Not something to be bragging about. </p>
<p>It really is getting crazy. As the announcement states, they are doing this to increase the amount available for need-based aid. At some point, maybe now, those of us paying full rates, will have had enough. We already have two kids in college and will have three next year. We are upper-middle class but far from super rich. My husband works two full-time jobs to pay the tuition and each kid takes $8K per year in loans. Now, according to Wake’s statement, they are raising our rates so other kids won’t have to borrow more than $4K/yr. Our kids can’t do study abroad programs due to the cost, while their need-based friends are traveling around Europe and elsewhere, paid for by our ridiculous tuition rates. There is a tipping point where the full-pays will just start going elsewhere and save the money for grad school. Then there will be fewer left to subsidize the rest. I may already be there. Son and I will have a serious talk this weekend.</p>
<p>As for Wake’s statement that they’re in line with other highly ranked schools, some of those competitors are located in high-cost areas. NC certainly does not fall into this category.</p>
<p>What is of particular interest to me is that my younger son is very interested in Elon. Same geographic area - roughly the same size school - and the COA is about $35,000. I like Elon’s model better - charge a lower tuition - and thus reduce the need for FA. You also have less of a cost differential between those that are full pay and those that receive significant FA. </p>
<p>Do we associate cost with prestige? Is WF more prestigious than Elon because it costs $20,000 more?</p>
<p>Something just seems inherently wrong in a system where prices are hiked up for those that can afford to pay it in order to subsidize those who cannot. Simply charging a lower rate, as Elon does, seems to make so much more sense. Thoughts?</p>
<p>Let me see…I have one child at Wake and another child who is waiting on her acceptance. By my calculations, and if you assume a retirement contribution, the first $200,000 (gross) I earn will go to WFU. What are we thinking? I did not go to a superior undergraduate or graduate school, and I received an excellent education. Further, I love my profession, and I earn more than most people I know. Most importantly, I work independently and enjoy freedom to raise my four (4) children. Exactly what are we buying for our children?</p>
<p>Husband has an Ivy league master’s degree. His brother and sister went to public schools. They both make more money.</p>
<p>Here’s an analogy to Wake’s tuition philosophy:</p>
<p>Five friends decide to meet at a bar after work for a beer. Two are poor, two are middle income and one is rich. When the $20 bill comes, they each contribute $4. They enjoy this so much they decide to do this every Tuesday. After a few months, they’re sitting at the bar when the check arrives. The two poor ones announce that they don’t think they should have to contribute anything to the tab because they have such low income. The two middle income ones state that times are touch on them as well so they feel they should only have to pay $2 each for their beer, leaving the rich friend to pay $16 for his beer. The following Tuesday, the rich friend doesn’t show up at the bar, leaving the other four to wonder who’s going to pay for their beer.</p>
<p>Now I certainly don’t mind giving a break to those who make less than me, but I can’t see paying $16 for a beer.</p>
<p>Sad but true analogy cpr777. I have to admit that I am surprised that they raised the tuition and room and board so high. The cost of college is mind numbing (and wallet numbing) and as a full pay family, I am a little bit sick of everyone having their hand in my pocket. Our son has 2 years left and I have a daughter who will be applying to schools this fall and Wake is on the list. The thought of two of them in at once at those rates makes me shutter. Unfortunately, most of the schools on her list are high price private schools. I am hoping that some merit aid comes her way but I won’t hold my breath. We had always hoped that we would pay for our kids undergrad education so that they would graduate debt free but these schools are making that tough to do as I feel like I am paying for more than just my own children. Curious to see if this will be a trend with top colleges and universities for the 2011/2012 school year.</p>
<p>Then again, there is no requirement that your student attend a private university. If you are a full pay family and NC resident, Chapel Hill provides just as good an education for a fraction of the cost. If you insist on the cachet of a private degree, then you pay for it.</p>
<p>Of course, in-state at Chapel Hill is much lower - but look at the percentage increase:</p>
<p>CHAPEL HILL As expected, the UNC system’s governing board this morning approved average tuition and fee increases of about $400 a year – or about 6.8 percent – for in-state undergraduate students in 2011-12.</p>
<p>The increases, requested by individual campuses, would provide critical revenue as administrators brace for another year of budget cuts.</p>
<p>“We’re trying to do everything we can to preserve the quality of the education,” Randy Woodson, chancellor at N.C. State University, said Thursday. “This, frankly, is a necessary step.”</p>
<p>A year ago, students received a double-shot of tuition misery. The UNC system approved its customary increases early in the year, and the legislature later approved a second, larger rate hike to help fill a swelling budget hole. On some campuses, the collective increase hit 18 percent.</p>
<p>Read more: [UNC</a> tuition and fees increase by 6.8 percent - CharlotteObserver.com](<a href=“http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/11/2054064/unc-tuition-and-fees-increase.html#ixzz1DgOQUBhB]UNC”>http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2011/02/11/2054064/unc-tuition-and-fees-increase.html#ixzz1DgOQUBhB)</p>
<p>Tom,
No doubt that my kids could choose public options and trust me I am not whining about their choice of going private just whining about how unaffordable college is becoming. I am not a NC resident, but our state university is a good one (UCONN). Problem is my daughter does not want to attend a large school and our other state schools are just so so. So to say you have a public option, while true, really depends on what state you live in and their quality of education. Now if I only lived in Virginia…</p>
<p>@irish, I was not adressing your comment specifically, just in general. I am from Massachusetts and UMass as a state flagship is lacking. My parents were full pay too. I ended up at McGill University in Montreal where the tuition for international students at the time (mid-1990’s) was only slightly higher than in state tuition at UMass. I also received a renewable merit scholarship that covered almost full tuition. Even Canadian schools are no longer the bargain for Americans that they were a decade ago though. I had no qualms about a large school or large classes fortunately. If I had been from VA, NC or MI I likely would have attended those flagships.</p>
<p>My wife and I both graduated from Wake. Our daughters both went to an Ivy at which they received generous financial aid. Their younger brother, with similar stats, likes the moderate size of most Ivies, but wants very much to participate in a Division I marching band. Wake would be a great fit for him. In the last year or so, we’ve inherited assets that along with our moderate income would put us in the “poor full payer” category along with Jcold9. As a loyal Wake alum, it hurts me to say that the college list for my academically-strong, smaller campus-favoring son doesn’t include my Alma Mater - but from a financial standpoint, it doesn’t. :(</p>
<p>gadad - has he looked into the Presidential scholarship for music? I had a couple of friends that were in marching band and received that scholarship. It wouldn’t lock him into being a music major, but IIRC, he would have to participate in a couple of the different musical ensembles. It would be worth a shot, anyway.</p>
<p>I agree about the tuition…I’m glad I’m already out and not as worried about the hikes anymore!</p>
<p>They raise tuition this much yet they’re also making me pay $75 for a new computer battery … “insurance doesn’t cover it”.</p>
<p>Just sayin’. I love Wake but this is the one thing that truly drives me nuts about it.</p>
<p>They need to build up their endowment to have more money to provide in financial aid. It really is a wonderful school but the economic reality is that so many people will be priced out of it, even with “high” incomes. Wake is not alone in costing so much, though.</p>
<p>This article is several years old - however - it really explains some factors in college pricing.</p>
<p><a href=“http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/12/education/12tuition.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all[/url]”>http://www.nytimes.com/2006/12/12/education/12tuition.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all</a></p>
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