State System of Higher Education freezes tuition for 6th straight year

Tuition across Pennsylvania’s 10 state-owned universities will not increase this fall as the State System of Higher Education on Wednesday approved a sixth consecutive tuition freeze, this one for 2024-25.

During a special meeting, held virtually, the State System’s Board of Governors voted unanimously to keep full-time undergraduate tuition for Pennsylvanians at $7,716 a year, the seventh straight year since that rate was first approved for 201819.

The 10 universities enroll almost 83,000 students. The campuses include Pennsylvania Western University (California, Clarion, Edinboro), Indiana University of Pennsylvania and Slippery Rock University in Western Pennsylvania.

The technology fee across the system will remain at $478 per year for in-state students for 2024-25. As part of a two-year price-setting policy, Wednesday’s action includes a tentative plan to freeze tuition in 2025-26, depending on factors including the state’s budget process for fiscal 2026.

The vote follows, by almost a week, passage of the state’s $47.6 billion budget for fiscal year 2025. Included was a 6% or $35.1 million appropriation increase that raises the system’s subsidy to almost $621 million.

Leaders including board Chair Cynthia Shapira and system Chancellor Daniel Greenstein had earlier announced their hope to keep tuition rates unchanged and expressed gratitude for the state’s boost in dollar support — up by a third in just the last five years.

Tuition would be 25% higher had the state system approved tuition increases at the inflation rate between July 2019 and its vote Wednesday, officials said.

The system “appreciates the governor and legislature for their strong support of our students and this investment in the State System,” Greenstein said in a statement released after the vote. “Keeping tuition frozen for a seventh consecutive year will help more students get a college education and deliver on (the State System’s) mission to provide a quality higher education at the lowest cost to students.”

He added, “Pennsylvania’s workforce depends on the talented and well-educated graduates from (State System) universities. Together with the state, we are making higher education more affordable and accessible, and strengthening the college-to-career pipeline of innovative thinkers and problem solvers, which benefits the students, their families and Pennsylvania’s economy.”

Each year, in-state undergraduate tuition is set by the state system board. Individual universities set their out-of-state undergraduate, in-state and out-of-state graduate tuition rates and all fees including room and board. Starting in 2025, the technology fee will be set by individual campuses, too.

Shippensburg University is the sole member institution with a per-credit tuition system in place. Those rates are also frozen.

Wednesday’s vote means public university rates in Western Pennsylvania are now set.

Last week, Pitt raised the in-state tuition on its main Oakland campus by 2%, but froze tuition at its Greensburg, Johnstown, Bradford and Titusville campuses.

That translates into a $20,556 yearly rate for main campus students in the Dietrich School of Arts and Sciences, Pitt’s largest school. Out-of-state students will pay $40,060.

Pitt Greensburg, Johnstown and Bradford students will pay $13,660, while Titusville students will pay $11,568.

Penn State earlier raised base in-state tuition by 2% for Pennsylvanians attending the main University Park campus and 4% for out-of-state students as it did in 2023-24.

Rates remain frozen for students on its branches including Penn State New Kensington in Upper Burrell, Penn State Greater Allegheny, on the border of McKeesport and White Oak, Penn State Beaver and Penn State Fayette, the Eberly campus, as well as Penn State Shenango.

Lower division in-state students attending full time will pay $20,066 in tuition.

In-state rates at the branches are lower and vary by location.

Temple University raised in-state tuition by an average of 4.2% for the upcoming academic year, bringing the base in-state rate in arts and sciences to $18,864.

The fiscal 2025 state budget provided no general funding increase to those state-related universities.

In addition to the Western Pennsylvania campuses and Shippensburg, state system member universities include Cheyney, Commonwealth University of Pennsylvania, East Stroudsburg, Kutztown, Millersville, and West Chester.