Last week the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities (NAICU) released a survey  of tuition and financial aid increases of colleges for the 2012-13 school year.

The average increase in tuition among universities surveyed was 3.9%, the first time in 40 years that the percentage was under 4 percent and the lowest number that NAICU has recorded since they began tracking increases in 1972. According to the NAICU website there are many factors that cause universities to increase their tuition each year including employee health care and information technology. Yet universities are attempting to decrease the price increases in order to attract more students.

Georgetown’s tuition has increased by 3.5 percent this academic year from $40,920 to $42,360. Room and board charges increased by 2 percent so the total increase in cost to attend Georgetown went from $53,910 to $55,640, a 3.2 percent increase. Georgetown’s tuition increase rate was lower than the average of 3.9 percent.

“Students and families are increasingly price- and value-conscious,” said NAICU President David L. Warren in a news release on the NAICU website. “Private college leaders are listening, and working hard to keep students’ out-of-pockets costs as low as possible and provide the best value for the tuition dollar.”

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The good news: Georgetown dropped in Campus Grotto‘s annual ranking of the nation’s most expensive colleges. The bad news: Georgetown is still in the top 15.

According to the rankings, Georgetown is the 15th-most expensive college in America. The annual tuition cost, $39,768, was ranked the 52nd-most expensive.

Campus Grotto complied the rankings through the sum of each college’s tuition, room, and board costs. Optional student fees, such as University-provided insurance, are not included in the cost.

“We take the price a typical freshman would pay for tuition, room and board,” the college news website wrote.

With an annual cost of $53,340, Georgetown is the ninth most expensive school in the country, according to Forbes.

The rankings, which were compiled using data provided by the Chronicle of Higher Education and Campus Grotto, almost exclusively features small, private colleges in the Northeast.

Although Forbes did not account for financial aid, the rankings reflect the costs of tuition, fees, room, board for college students during the 2010-2011 academic year.

Sarah Lawrence College topped the list with its $57, 730 annual cost. Last year, Georgetown was ranked seventh most expensive by Campus Grotto and second most expensive by CNN.

Adding insult to injury, our perennially-expensive neighbors in Foggy Bottom dropped out of the top 10 in the Forbes rankings.

The difference between Georgetown and George Washington? $65.

The Georgetown University Board of Directors have approved a 3 percent tuition increase and 2 percent increase in room and board charges for the 2010-2011 school year, Blue and Gray is reporting.

The increases will bring the cost of tuition up to $39,768 from this year’s $38,616, and the total cost of a Georgetown education for the year will increase to $52,443.

“We understand that the lagging economy is having a real impact on our students and their families,” Provost James O’Donnell said. “These uncertain times require that we balance the need to limit tuition growth with the university’s commitment to supporting our top notch faculty and providing exceptional academic programs and services.”

Blue and Gray notes that hikes increase next year’s total cost of attending Georgetown by less than 3 percent of this year’s cost. The Board also approved an 8 percent increase of the school’s financial aid budget to accommodate the more than 55 percent of students who draw from financial aid every year.

Tuition has increased at Georgetown’s other schools, too. At the Medical Center, for instance, the cost a degree in medicine has increased from $42,803 to $43,616. An MBA student’s annual tuition will rise from $41,952 to $45,984. And it will cost $45,105 a year to pursue a law degree, up from $43,750. (Of course, those can be sold). You can see all the tuition changes here (PDF).

Last year around this time, the Board approved a 2.9 percent tuition hike. They cited the recession then, too, and pointed out that it was the smallest tuition increase Georgetown had ever imposed. Last year, the increase was coupled with an 18 percent increase in the need-based scholarship budget.

Save these

Whether or not it turns out that Georgetown could have prevented Sunday night’s fire in New South, it’ll probably irk at least a few residents to learn that Georgetown just made U.S. News & World Report’s list of “10 Schools With Pricey Dorms.”

CNN recently released a ranking of the most expensive colleges and universities (based on data from the Chronicle of Higher Education) and Georgetown is a very high achiever: according to their data, we’re the second most expensive school in the country this year.

With a total cost of $52,161 for the 2009-10 school year, the only school that Georgetown is cheaper than is Sarah Lawrence College, which clocked in with a total cost of $55,788.  According to CNN, Georgetown’s total cost increased by 2.9 percent from the 2008-09 school year.

Perhaps the most tragic thing about this ranking is that we can no longer point at GW for being so outrageously expensive—they’re a whole two spots and $386 below us this year.

Georgetown is the seventh most expensive school in the country for the 2009-10 school year, according to a list just compiled by Campus Grotto.  With a total average cost of $51,122 per year, we’re more comparatively economical than we were last year, when we came in third.

The curious thing about Georgetown’s showing is that although we’re the seventh most expensive school overall, we only have the 41st highest tuition ($38,616 per year), meaning we’re making up the difference with much higher room and board fees.

Luckily, we can still boast about being (slightly) less expensive than our cross-town peers at George Washington.  With a total average cost of $51,730, they claim the title of the third most expensive school in the nation.

Uncle Sam: not so great at doling out cash

The new GI Bill greatly expanded the benefits available to student-veterans this year, which is awesome.  Unfortunately, the Department of Veterans Affairs has been overwhelmed by new applicants and there have been large-scale delays in processing tuition, housing, and text-book payments, the Washington Post reported over the weekend.

According to the Post, of the 251,000 students who applied for support from the VA, less than 10 percent have received checks.  Many student have had to take out last-minute loans or accumulate credit card debt in order to stay enrolled because of the delay.

Georgetown’s Director of Media Relations Andy Pino wrote in an e-mail that some of the University’s student veterans have received checks, and Georgetown is working with the rest as they wait for their payments to be processed by the VA.

In an effort to prevent late payment charges that may result from a processing backlog at the VA, we are placing temporary credits on all the accounts of students that have provided a Certificate of Eligibility.

For those that have not gotten a Certificate of Eligibility, we will remove any applicable late payment charges once we receive the certification. The student veterans have still been able to register and attend classes.

Pino did not specify how many Georgetown students are being affected by the VA backlog.

Block sweet block

Ok, so it’s a little early for nostalgia, but it’s only fair that we keep you posted.

In last week’s cover story, Eric Pilch explained the passion and rationale that accompanied the University of the District of Columbia’s Board of Trustee’s decision to raise tuition at D.C.’s only public university.

Guess City Councilmember Marion Barry (D-Ward 8 ) didn’t read it. Fresh out of the hospital from a kidney transplant operation, the former mayor had intended to pass emergency legislation to prevent UDC from changing its open enrollment policy and require that its Board take 45 days to reevaluate their decision to nearly double tuition as of Sunday evening. Loose Lips predicted a 3-10 vote.

But by Monday morning, the Washington Post‘s D.C. Wire reported that they expected Barry to withdraw his emergency bill in favor of introducing “a permanent bill, which takes longer to make its way into law and requires fewer council members to get approval.”

At the end of the day, Barry never showed up the the City Council meeting—doc’s orders. He withdrew his original bill, but has yet to introduce his permanent legislation. We’ll keep you posted.

Update: Marion Barry has returned to Howard University Hospital, and aides expect him to remain there until the week is out.

Photo taken from Flickr user dcdailyphotos under a Creative Commons license.

Your pockets: now 2.9% emptier!

The Board of Directors just announced next year’s tuition: it will be a 2.9% increase, up to $38,616 from this year’s $37,536. Room and Board fees will also increase 2.9%, taking the average price of a year’s worth of a Georgetown education up to a whopping $51,543.

However, the University will also be increasing its supply of need-based scholarship aid by 18%. The current budget projection is that University will give $88 million in financial aid.

University spokesperson Julie Green-Bataille also noted in an e-mail that, percentage-wise, this is Georgetown’s smallest undergraduate tuition increase since 1973.