The Chronicle chose one large public research institution per state—often the flagship—and examined its subsidy for education and related expenses per student in 2008, the most recent year for which those data have been reported. This figure is the share of educational spending not covered by tuition. For many but not all flagships, state appropriations finance a significant portion of this subsidy (see related article). This sortable table also shows the percentage of total revenues from state appropriations, a figure that has declined at many flagship institutions.
| Institution | Subsidy for education and related expenses per student, 2008 | 5-year change | % of total
revenues from state
appropriations, 2008 | 5-year change in percentage points |
| U. of North Carolina at Chapel Hill | $26,373 | -4% | 23% | -1% |
| U. of Washington* | $19,575 | 12% | 12% | -1% |
| U. of California at Berkeley | $16,165 | -10% | 29% | -8% |
| U. at Buffalo | $16,086 | 34% | 51% | 8% |
| U. of Nevada at Reno | $14,624 | 3% | 39% | 3% |
| U. of Texas* | $14,594 | -7% | 23% | -3% |
| U. of Hawaii—Manoa | $14,025 | -1% | 32% | 0% |
| U. of Minnesota—Twin Cities | $13,616 | -15% | 26% | -4% |
| U. of Alaska* | $13,435 | 11% | 48% | 6% |
| U. of Michigan at Ann Arbor | $13,309 | 1% | 7% | -2% |
| U. of Wyoming | $13,131 | 20% | 47% | 4% |
| U. of Tennessee* | $12,260 | -11% | 33% | -2% |
| U. of Connecticut* | $11,818 | 1% | 39% | -3% |
| Ohio State U.* | $10,647 | 15% | 13% | -4% |
| U. of Florida | $10,587 | -9% | 34% | -3% |
| U. of Utah | $9,984 | 33% | 13% | 0% |
| U. of Arkansas main campus* | $9,720 | 16% | 29% | 11% |
| U. of Iowa | $9,220 | 24% | 16% | -2% |
| U. of North Dakota* | $8,707 | -10% | 24% | -4% |
| Rutgers U.* | $8,702 | 4% | 26% | -5% |
| U. of Kansas | $8,663 | 23% | 28% | 2% |
| U. of Wisconsin at Madison | $8,611 | -7% | 19% | -3% |
| U. of Arizona | $8,570 | -6% | 32% | 0% |
| U. of Idaho | $8,421 | 0% | 40% | -1% |
| U. of Massachusetts* | $8,418 | 6% | 26% | -2% |
| U. of Delaware | $8,402 | 4% | 22% | 2% |
| Louisiana State U. | $8,395 | 34% | 41% | 1% |
| U. of Virginia | $8,341 | 8% | 8% | -2% |
| U. of South Dakota | $8,146 | 18% | 32% | -5% |
| U. of Kentucky | $7,613 | -31% | 17% | -7% |
| U. of Maryland at College Park | $7,392 | -24% | 27% | -2% |
| U. of Missouri* | $7,246 | -7% | 19% | -4% |
| U. of Nebraska at Lincoln/Omaha* | $7,024 | 10% | 31% | -6% |
| U. of Alabama* | $6,932 | -11% | 36% | 10% |
| U. of New Mexico/New Mexico State U.* | $6,855 | 1% | 27% | 0% |
| U. of Mississippi* | $6,757 | 2% | 25% | 2% |
| U. of Oklahoma at Norman | $6,657 | 11% | 23% | -4% |
| U. of Vermont | $6,148 | 9,292% | 9% | -1% |
| U. of Illinois* | $6,035 | -31% | 18% | -5% |
| Indiana U. at Bloomington | $5,953 | 10% | 22% | -4% |
| U. of Maine* | $5,823 | -11% | 30% | -1% |
| U. of Georgia | $5,235 | -20% | 42% | -5% |
| U. of South Carolina at Columbia | $4,368 | -33% | 23% | -6% |
| West Virginia U. | $3,912 | -33% | 26% | -9% |
| U. of Montana* | $3,842 | -2% | 18% | 0% |
| U. of Oregon | $3,792 | 29% | 15% | -2% |
| U. of Rhode Island | $3,367 | -44% | 18% | -8% |
| U. of New Hampshire* | $2,686 | 5% | 14% | -2% |
| Pennsylvania State U.* | $2,373 | -42% | 9% | -3% |
| U. of Colorado at Boulder** | $665 | -86% | n/a | n/a |
Editor’s note: This table contains revised information that is different from what was in the originally published version.
* Figures may reflect data from multiple branch campuses in a system.
** Colorado has an unusual formula for financing higher education which emphasizes state financing for student aid, money that is not reflected in these appropriations figures.
Note: Educational subsidy may include endowment and gift income. Spending and revenues per student are based on full-time-equivalent students. Five-year change from 2003 to 2008 is adjusted for inflation. The designation ‘n/a’ means information was not available.
Source: Delta Project on Postsecondary Education Costs, Productivity, and Accountability