Private Colleges Could Profit from State Tuition Spike

Tennessee’s private colleges may stand to gain from what is shaping up to be one of the biggest tuition hikes in the history of state schools.

UT and Board of Regents schools are nowhere near a final figure for next year’s tuition increase, but they’re working with a range of 10 to 24-percent. They’re dealing with monumental decreases in state funding. That’s not something private colleges face.

Claude Presnell directs the Tennessee Independent Colleges and Universities Association. He says private schools have been hit financially by slumping investment income and increased borrowing costs.

“It will be interesting to see, but I’m anticipating that our tuition increases will trend about where they have in the past – somewhere between that 6% to 8% increase.”

Presnell stops short of saying private schools will take advantage of the situation and recruit students away from state-funded schools. But he says the tuition gap between the two is shrinking, which could be good for enrollment at private colleges.

As state schools become more tuition dependent, Presnell says they could learn something from private colleges who have always had to operate that way. While tuition is often high, schools try to target plenty of financial aid to those who really can’t afford to attend.