<p>Send your thank you notes to the state legislature...</p>
<p>
[quote]
When the costs of room, board, books and other expenses are added to tuition, the average total price tag at UT this year is $21,000 for an in-state undergraduate.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>When I attended UT-Austin in the early 80's, tuition was $250 per semester.</p>
<p>It was bound to happen sooner or later. I'm glad we bought into that Texas Tomorrow Fund. They're even letting me use it towards my out-of-state school.</p>
<p>I crack up every time a state legislator expresses outrage over increasing tuition -just what did they think would happen when they deregulated tuition?</p>
<p>
[quote]
I crack up every time a state legislator expresses outrage over increasing tuition -just what did they think would happen when they deregulated tuition?
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Sorry if this doesn't come of a bit lepid, but how do exactly do you do around deregulating tuition?</p>
<p>SGupta, the state of Texas used to mandate what Texas public universities could charge for tuition. About four years ago, the state legislature decided to allow the state universities to set their own tuition. Ever since, tuition has increased quite a bit, which has caused the legislators to howl (as if they had no idea this would happen).</p>
<p>Now it's about the same as Rutgers (NJ) - which is why many good students leave the state.</p>
<p>Exactly right, jerzgrlmom! This is so sad. We have been living with high instate tuition in NJ. I guess other states are now joining the party.</p>
<p>
[quote]
When I attended UT-Austin in the early 80's, tuition was $250 per semester
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Ditto... it was also cheaper for my husband to pay OOS tuition and attend UT, than remain in Connecticut and pay in-state tuition.</p>
<p>Seems that I remember reading something not so long ago that said Texas publics had oil endowments that generated income and they were not dependent on student tuition. Has this changed? Are all texas schools increasing tuition or is it just UT? I also have a number of friends from childhood in NY who went to school in Texas because it was so much cheaper than NY publics.</p>
<p>The State's Permanent University Fund kept tuition at UT and A&M low for many decades. The proceeds from oil & gas royalties on state-owned land went into the PUF, which is the second largest endowment (@$15B) after Harvard's. UT gets 2/3 and A&M gets 1/3. However, several things happened: 1) UT's and A&M's budgets grew much larger; 2) oil and gas reserves on state land began to tap out; and 3) in 1984, the State ruled that the PUF had to be shared with @ 15 other state schools in the UT and A&M systems.</p>
<p>The only reason I applied to Texas Tech Law School (in addition to the school's solid reputation, if not quite at the UT level) was that the non-resident tution was quite affordable back in the day. Ended up going to a East Coast school with a more revered reputation, but at least one of my classmates from Texas transfered to UT Law; his incentive was financial, of course.</p>