Ohio State proposes increase in tuition and fees for new first-year students

The Ohio State University plans to increase tuition and fees for incoming Ohio freshmen by 3.9%, which equates to a $434 annual change from last year’s rate, according to a proposal being presented to the university’s Board of Trustees on Wednesday.

The new rate will then be frozen for four years for these students, who are the fourth class to join the university under the Ohio State Tuition Guarantee. The university will also increase financial aid packages for Pell-eligible students by $434 so that these students are unaffected by the change.

The Ohio State Tuition Guarantee provides students with predictability about college costs by locking in-state tuition, mandatory fees, housing and dining for each incoming class of undergraduate students from Ohio. The class of 2021 will be the first to have entered and graduated under the tuition guarantee.

Ohio State evaluates tuition and fees annually and sets rates based on program needs and market data. Pending approval by the board of trustees, additional tuition and fee proposals include:

• The non-resident surcharge for students who attend classes in person would increase 4.8%. Overall, tuition and mandatory fees for non-resident students would increase by 4.5%, or $1,441.
• The non-resident surcharge for students who take all of their classes online would be $1,795 per semester unless they are in a specific online degree/certificate program, in which case the non-resident surcharge will be $200 per semester.
• Housing and dining rates would increase by 2.5% for incoming students and remain frozen for those in the Ohio State Tuition Guarantee. The most popular plans on the Columbus campus would cost $13,026, compared with $12,708 for students who entered last year.
• Student health insurance, which covers the cost of third-party health coverage, would increase 1.5%. Most U.S. students utilize private insurance instead of obtaining coverage through the university.
• General graduate tuition and fees will remain unchanged for Ohio residents. Among graduate and professional programs that have specific fee structures, a number are making adjustments.

Based on Ohio State’s tuition and fee proposals, the university would be the second most affordable for resident undergraduates among selective admission public universities in Ohio. The university would remain at the median for in-state tuition and fees among public Big Ten schools.

In Columbus, in-state tuition and fees would total $11,518 per year through 2024-25 for incoming first-year students. Including the most common housing and dining plans, the total rate for these students would be $24,544.

At regional campuses, in-state tuition and fees for incoming students would be set at $8,237 for the Lima, Mansfield, Marion and Newark campuses and $8,197 at the Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster. Most regional campus students do not live on campus.

Ohio State has placed a strategic emphasis on access, affordability and excellence. As of summer 2020, the university has devoted more than $200 million to increase support for low- and moderate-income Ohioans since 2015. Through the end of the coming academic year, an estimated 40,000 Buckeye families will have benefited from three financial aid programs:

• The Buckeye Opportunity Program, which ensures that financial aid covers the cost of tuition and mandatory fees for Ohio students who qualify for federal Pell Grants.
• President’s Affordability Grants, which support about 15,000 students annually at all Ohio State campuses.
• Land Grant Opportunity Scholarships, which have been expanded to cover the full cost of attendance and doubled in number since autumn 2018.