Tuition, Fees, And Other Costs At Kentucky Public Universities

Tuition, Fees, And Other Costs At Kentucky Public Universities

Research Report No. 458

Program Review And Investigations Committee

Tuition, Fees, And Other Costs At Kentucky Public Universities

Program Review And Investigations Committee

Sen. Danny Carroll, Co-chair Rep. Rob Rothenburger, Co-chair

Sen. Tom Buford Sen. Perry B. Clark Sen. Dan "Malano" Seum Sen. Reginald Thomas Sen. Stephen West Sen. Whitney Westerfield Sen. Phillip Wheeler

Rep. Lynn Bechler Rep. Chris Fugate Rep. Al Gentry Rep. Adam Koenig Rep. Ruth Ann Palumbo Rep. Steve Riley Rep. Walker Thomas

Project Staff

Scott Tremoulis Whitney Davis, PhD

William Spears

Greg Hager, PhD Committee Staff Administrator

Research Report No. 458

Legislative Research Commission

Frankfort, Kentucky

legislature.

Adopted May 9, 2019

Paid for with state funds. Available in alternative format by request.

Abstract

The Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education (CPE) is authorized by statute to set tuition and mandatory fees at Kentucky's eight public universities. For the 9-year period after CPE implemented a tuition ceiling policy, the average annual tuition increase was 4.6 percent, less than half the average in the period preceding the policy change. Students must differentiate between a university's total cost of attendance, which does not take financial assistance into account, and its net price, which does. In academic year 2015, the total cost of attendance for an in-state student living on a Kentucky campus ranged from less than $19,000 to more than $25,000, depending on the university. Net prices ranged from more than $8,000 to more than $16,000. Since 2007, net price, adjusted for inflation, increased by at least 17 percent at five Kentucky universities but decreased at three. The average net price for Kentucky universities in 2015 was lower than the average for universities in four of seven surrounding states and in 9 of 15 other southern states. Depending on the Kentucky university, net price as a percentage of state median household income ranged from 18 percent to more than 35 percent in 2015, with the percentage increasing at seven of eight universities since 2007. Approximately 93 percent of students at all Kentucky universities received some type of financial aid in academic year 2015, including 68 percent who received state grant aid. The average institutional grant and loan were each more than $6,500. Average state grant aid was less than $2,300. Kentucky's university graduates had a median debt of nearly $24,000 in FY 2015; the average student's 3-year default rate was 11 percent.

Legislative Research Commission Program Review And Investigations

Foreword

Foreword

The authors of this report thank the staff of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, especially Senior Fellow and Legislative Liaison Ron Carson; Vice President of Finance and Administration William Payne; Senior Associate for Finance and Administration Shaun McKiernan; Vice President for Policy, Planning, and External Relations Lee Nimocks; Associate Vice President of Data, Research, and Analysis David Mahan; and General Counsel and Associate Vice President Travis Powell.

Budget officials Ryan Green at Eastern Kentucky University, Douglas Allen at Kentucky Community and Technical Colleges, Ray Griffith at Kentucky State University, Teresa Lindgren at Morehead State University, Jackie Dudley at Murray State University, Angela Schaffer at Northern Kentucky University, Angie Martin and Shan Hong Wang at the University of Kentucky, Rick Graycarek at the University of Louisville, and Stacy Garrett at Western Kentucky University provided insight into university financials.

The Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System help desk staff answered data questions.

Legislative Research Commission Frankfort, Kentucky May 9, 2019

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