Skip to content
ADVERTISEMENT
Sign In
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Virtual Events
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
  • More
  • Sections
    • News
    • Advice
    • The Review
  • Topics
    • Data
    • Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion
    • Finance & Operations
    • International
    • Leadership & Governance
    • Teaching & Learning
    • Scholarship & Research
    • Student Success
    • Technology
    • Transitions
    • The Workplace
  • Magazine
    • Current Issue
    • Special Issues
    • Podcast: College Matters from The Chronicle
  • Newsletters
  • Virtual Events
  • Ask Chron
  • Store
    • Featured Products
    • Reports
    • Data
    • Collections
    • Back Issues
  • Jobs
    • Find a Job
    • Post a Job
    • Professional Development
    • Career Resources
    • Virtual Career Fair
    Upcoming Events:
    An AI-Driven Work Force
    AI and Microcredentials
Sign In
Sticker Prices

Despite Sky-High Inflation, No Sign Yet of Surging Tuition Costs

By Dan Bauman September 13, 2022

While high inflation continues to bedevil the wider economy, those price increases have yet to translate into significant spikes in college-tuition costs across the nation, according to data released on Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Since August 2021, out-of-pocket college-tuition costs for households have climbed by 2.79 percent in a 12-month span, according to the bureau’s analysis. In contrast, prices across the economy grew by 8.3 percent in comparison with a year ago.

This gap between muted tuition inflation and the increased costs of most goods and services is likely to squeeze colleges financially, said Robert Kelchen, a professor of education at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Student-derived revenue typically accounts for about 75 percent and 50 percent of total operating revenue for private and public universities, respectively, according to Moody’s Investors Service, a credit-rating agency.

To continue reading for FREE, please sign in.

Sign In

Or subscribe now to read with unlimited access for as low as $10/month.

Don’t have an account? Sign up now.

A free account provides you access to a limited number of free articles each month, plus newsletters, job postings, salary data, and exclusive store discounts.

Sign Up

While high inflation continues to bedevil the wider economy, those price increases have yet to translate into significant spikes in college-tuition costs across the nation, according to data released on Tuesday by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Since August 2021, out-of-pocket college-tuition costs for households have climbed by 2.79 percent in a 12-month span, according to the bureau’s analysis. In contrast, prices across the economy grew by 8.3 percent in comparison with a year ago.

Muted tuition inflation, coupled with the increased costs of most goods and services, is likely to squeeze colleges financially, said Robert Kelchen, a professor of education at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. Student-derived revenue typically accounts for about 75 percent and 50 percent of total operating revenue for private and public universities, respectively, according to Moody’s Investors Service, a credit-rating agency.

To be sure, some institutions are jacking up their sticker prices for the 2022-23 academic year to combat the effects of inflation. In Iowa, regents overseeing the state’s three public universities voted to raise tuition by 4.25 percent. Trustees at Pennsylvania State University took a similar approach, approving a 5-percent tuition-rate increase. “We are caught in an inflationary vise,” wrote President Robert A. Brown of Boston University in May, when he announced that tuition would go up by 4.25 percent for the coming academic year.

Apart from these and other examples, a broader appetite to raise tuition rates has yet to manifest itself. Indeed, the post-pandemic era of subdued tuition-price growth looks nothing like the market that colleges enjoyed in the 1980s, ‘90s, and 2000s — decades defined by soaring tuition prices, according to historical data.

Why aren’t tuition prices rising like they once did?

There are most likely several factors in play. In the past decade, some consumers have grown more price-sensitive regarding the cost of college. That interest in affordability, in turn, reduced the commercial advantage of institutions and spawned relatively modest tuition increases. Meanwhile, the population of graduating high schoolers has stagnated. With increased competition to recruit a freshman class, most institutions have lost additional leverage to set prices, though did still manage to eke out revenues in a low-inflation environment. Of course, that was until a historic pandemic led to additional enrollment losses, and price increases rippled across the economy.

“Most colleges just don’t have the market power to increase tuition anywhere near the rate of inflation,” said Kelchen.

Without surges in enrollment or significant revenues from nontuition sources (such as donors), Kelchen said, institutions will probably struggle to, for instance, finance competitive wages for employees, or subsidize programs outside of certain core services.

“This is a set of circumstances most people in higher ed have never seen before,” Kelchen said.

ADVERTISEMENT

The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ analysis indicates that college-tuition prices traditionally rise most significantly in August and September, relative to fainter increases calculated during the rest of the academic year. September index values will be published next month. So, while tuition doesn’t appear to have spiked during the past two months, that doesn’t eliminate the possibility of sectorwide tuition changes sometime in the future.

We welcome your thoughts and questions about this article. Please email the editors or submit a letter for publication.
Tags
Finance & Operations
Share
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn
  • Facebook
  • Email
Bauman_Dan.jpg
About the Author
Dan Bauman
Dan Bauman is a reporter who investigates and writes about all things data in higher education. Tweet him at @danbauman77, or email him at dan.bauman@chronicle.com.
ADVERTISEMENT
ADVERTISEMENT

More News

Photo illustration showing Santa Ono seated, places small in the corner of a dark space
'Unrelentingly Sad'
Santa Ono Wanted a Presidency. He Became a Pariah.
Illustration of a rushing crowd carrying HSI letters
Seeking precedent
Funding for Hispanic-Serving Institutions Is Discriminatory and Unconstitutional, Lawsuit Argues
Photo-based illustration of scissors cutting through paper that is a photo of an idyllic liberal arts college campus on one side and money on the other
Finance
Small Colleges Are Banding Together Against a Higher Endowment Tax. This Is Why.
Pano Kanelos, founding president of the U. of Austin.
Q&A
One Year In, What Has ‘the Anti-Harvard’ University Accomplished?

From The Review

Photo- and type-based illustration depicting the acronym AAUP with the second A as the arrow of a compass and facing not north but southeast.
The Review | Essay
The Unraveling of the AAUP
By Matthew W. Finkin
Photo-based illustration of the Capitol building dome propped on a stick attached to a string, like a trap.
The Review | Opinion
Colleges Can’t Trust the Federal Government. What Now?
By Brian Rosenberg
Illustration of an unequal sign in black on a white background
The Review | Essay
What Is Replacing DEI? Racism.
By Richard Amesbury

Upcoming Events

Plain_Acuity_DurableSkills_VF.png
Why Employers Value ‘Durable’ Skills
Warwick_Leadership_Javi.png
University Transformation: a Global Leadership Perspective
  • Explore Content
    • Latest News
    • Newsletters
    • Letters
    • Free Reports and Guides
    • Professional Development
    • Virtual Events
    • Chronicle Store
    • Chronicle Intelligence
    • Jobs in Higher Education
    • Post a Job
  • Know The Chronicle
    • About Us
    • Vision, Mission, Values
    • DEI at The Chronicle
    • Write for Us
    • Work at The Chronicle
    • Our Reporting Process
    • Advertise With Us
    • Brand Studio
    • Accessibility Statement
  • Account and Access
    • Manage Your Account
    • Manage Newsletters
    • Individual Subscriptions
    • Group and Institutional Access
    • Subscription & Account FAQ
  • Get Support
    • Contact Us
    • Reprints & Permissions
    • User Agreement
    • Terms and Conditions
    • Privacy Policy
    • California Privacy Policy
    • Do Not Sell My Personal Information
1255 23rd Street, N.W. Washington, D.C. 20037
© 2025 The Chronicle of Higher Education
The Chronicle of Higher Education is academe’s most trusted resource for independent journalism, career development, and forward-looking intelligence. Our readers lead, teach, learn, and innovate with insights from The Chronicle.
Follow Us
  • twitter
  • instagram
  • youtube
  • facebook
  • linkedin