Written by: Hannah Field | News Editor

All seven public, four-year universities in Oregon plan to raise tuition costs from three to five percent for the 2024-2025 academic school year.

Oregon State University’s in-state and full-time students will be expected to pay $14,400 per year; University of Oregon students are expecting more than $16,100; while Portland State University students can expect a $11,800 tuition. All three universities have the highest enrollment rates in the state.

Maureen Brakke, the director of marketing and communications at Western, made a statement in a post to the Western’s home website. “The Tuition Advisory Committee, which includes students, staff, and faculty, submitted a proposed five percent tuition increase, which was accepted by President Jesse Peters and presented to the Board of Trustees on April 17,” said Brakke.

In the same post, Peters shared his sentiment: “We take pride in offering students a tailored educational experience, fostering a sense of belonging, and delivering quality support services. We have worked hard to maintain affordability without compromising the exceptional quality of education and services that define Western,” Peters said.

Western, being the second least expensive public university in Oregon out of the seven, will increase tuition to nearly five percent for resident tuition and 4.86 percent for non-resident undergraduate tuition.

Eastern Oregon University, the least expensive public four-year university, will be resting at about $1,000 less than Western, with students expected to pay approximately $11,000 for in-state, full-time enrollment tuition.

Graduate tuition will rise by five percent, with no variation regarding residency. Summer 2024 tuition rates will be increased at the same rate as the 2024-2025 academic year cost.

In 2023, tuition at Western was raised by 3.09 percent for the 2023-2024 academic school year. Pre-pandemic, the 2017-2018 school year increased tuition by 6.4 percent, with the 2018-2019 school year having a proposed 4.03 percent increase, although it has not been confirmed whether or not this increase occurred. 

The 2019-2020 school year was approved for a 2.33 percent raise, equivalent to four dollars per credit, alongside the 2021-2022 school year receiving a 2.17 percent increase in tuition for resident undergraduate students.

The next academic year will leave Western at a higher tuition rate of about 18.85 percent at least since 2017 at the earliest, not including the suspected 4.03 percent increase from 2018-2019, and leaving out nonresident rates, which tend to be higher than resident tuition.

Statistics from Datausa.io reflect Western, in 2021, as having a 91.6 percent acceptance rate for incoming students but a graduation rate of less than half, at 48.3 percent. The same website lists Western’s tuition is $14,724 less than the national average overall from all Masters Colleges and Universities in the country.

Nationally, college average costs inflated nearly 12 percent annually from 2012 to 2022 according to educationdata.org.

It should be noted that the Incidental Funding Committee approved all requested base-level funding and additional funding requests at Western without raising student incidental fees. When discussing tuition rates, this excludes all fees such as health service fees, building fees, access to the recreational center, room and board costs, late payment fees and online course fees, alongside any other expenses students may be expected to pay.

“This slight tuition increase reflects our dedication to sustaining the excellence that makes us truly extraordinary,” said Peters in the latest statement — last year, when tuition increased by 3.09 percent, he said, “Our students are not just numbers; they are the future leaders of Oregon and the world, and we always look for new and innovative ways to support them.”

Contact the author at howlnews@mail.wou.edu