<p>just curious, i've always wondered this but do not really know.</p>
<p>no one knows? lol.</p>
<p>It is not that complicated. The laws of supply and demand dictate that the price is dictated by what suppliers (colleges) are willing to provide and what consumers (families) are willing to pay. Where supply and demand meet, there is your price. There are no shortage of applicants willing to pay full tuitions at the most expensive colleges, and in fact the consumers are demanding greater and greater investment in state-of-the art facilities, small class sizes, etc, which is driving up the cost of the product. Moreover, as was pointed out on another thread a few days ago, thanks to the stock market, runaway executive pay and the Bush tax cuts, the income of the top 5% of Americans, who constitute perhaps 50% of students at the elite colleges, has been rising much faster than inflation and is highly correlated with tuition.</p>
<p>Inflation. Remember when gas was 19 cents a gallon and a loaf of bread was a nickel? Maybe I should ask over in the Parents' Lounge.</p>