On September 13, 2023, the California State University Board of Trustees authorized a multi-year revenue sustainability plan for a system-wide increase in college tuition. This applies to all students of all grades beginning this 2024-25 fall term and last till the 2028-29 academic year.
This fee, which will climb by 6% annually over five academic years, will result in an annual increase of $342 for each resident undergraduate. Graduate professionals and nonresidents will see rate increases of a similar sort. In five years, this adds up to a nearly $2,000 increase.
The CSU’s leaders are driven by the need to supply higher academic resources and keep up with rising costs. Are these reasons justifiable or fair to students?
Though it may seem like an appropriate increase, it should come down to student affordability. Normal tuition is already a struggle for students because it is already too expensive. Those who don’t qualify for financial aid will be targeted the most as well as many other students as it increases future debt. College students will have to get a job and work long hours to pay it all off, while their debt piles up because neither scholarships nor financial aid are enough unless it is a full-ride scholarship or if they receive a lot of money, which many don’t.
A mental health article by Better Up, states, “Those living with debt are more likely to be depressed, anxious, or consider suicide (data cited above) Problems with money and debt lead to increased stress”.This shows how financial affordability will also affect student’s mental health negatively.
Scarlet Gutierrez, a former senior and graduate from Huntington Park High School, now attending UC Riverside as a political science major shared, “Fafsa has covered my tuition but it isn’t enough for my housing, so I had to take out a loan”. When asked about the increase, Scarlet mentioned, “I do not agree with the increase, although it will not have much effect on me I do know some people who are going to be affected by the increase”
This increase in college tuition will cause incoming college freshman students to turn away from college. A college cost enrollment survey by Gallup and Lumina, states “Among adults without a degree who aren’t currently enrolled, 55% reported program costs as a “very important” reason why they’re not in college, while 45% blamed concerns about affordability due to inflation and 38% cited the need to work”.College enrollment declines are already an issue, from high school students choosing not to go to college due to the main factor being financial limitations. This increase will only add to the number of students. Instead of trying to fix the issue, the rising cost will only make it harder for students to choose college after graduation. It may also cause students to turn down their ideal college.
This increase has caused a debate on whether it is greedy and unfair to increase student tuition, which is seen mostly through college students because, at the end of the day, it is students who are going to be affected, not those who approve of the increase.
This tuition will generate $148 million out of student’s pockets just in the first year, 2024, which is an excessive amount.
Mrs. Yesenia Enriquez, an English teacher, who attended college in the years 2000-2004, mentioned that college tuition was 860 per quarter at the time. This comes to show that college is getting expensive over the years.
CSU students have already decided to take action in disapproval of this increase, including through student rallies. If students are already taking action, this shows that the increase does not fit the needs of students, and shouldn’t students be considered first? After all, they are the foundation of college.
Written by Staff Writer, Tanya Chavez
Photo Credit Sarah Allam