Combined Tuition, Fees, Room and Board Charges at Rutgers to Rise Less Than 2 Percent for In-State Undergraduates in 2014-15

Typical New Jersey resident enrolled as Rutgers arts and sciences student will pay $25,561

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. – The Board of Governors of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, established tuition, fee and room and board rates for the 2014-15 academic year at its annual budget meeting today. Total charges for a typical, in-state undergraduate living on campus will rise by less than 2 percent under the plan approved by the board.

“Keeping the increase in total charges below 2 percent reflects the board’s commitment to continue to provide some of the nation’s finest academic programs and experiences at a competitive cost for our students and their families,” said Greg Brown, chair of the Board of Governors. 

“Rutgers students and their families, like all American families, have faced significant financial challenges in recent years. During that time, the university has provided millions of dollars in financial aid while keeping in-state tuition and fee increases among the lowest for public institutions here in New Jersey, and nationally, within the Association of American Universities,” Brown added. (See detail here)

Rutgers University is one of 62 universities that have been admitted to the Association of American Universities (AAU). AAU member universities include the top public and private research universities in the U.S. and Canada. Princeton University is the only other institution in New Jersey included in the AAU.

With the board’s action today, a New Jersey resident enrolled as an arts and sciences student in New Brunswick living in a traditional residence hall and using the university’s most popular dining plan will pay $25,561 in tuition, fees and room and board charges during the coming academic year, an increase of 1.93 percent. Comparable charges for a typical undergraduate in Camden living on campus will rise 1.98 percent to $25,096, while in Newark total charges for such students will rise 1.48 percent to $25,806.

A New Jersey arts and sciences undergraduate in New Brunswick who does not live on campus will pay $13,813 in tuition and mandatory fees this coming fall, while a similar student who commutes will see tuition and mandatory fee charges of $13,683 in Camden and $13,297 in Newark.

Specific charges for other Rutgers students may differ as tuition, fee and room and board rates vary across the university’s campuses and schools.

Helping to ensure that Rutgers remains accessible to all qualified New Jersey residents, the university will increase its Rutgers Assistance Grant (RAG) program by more than 3 percent to $31.5 million. RAG awards are used to supplement state and federal financial aid offerings. More than 70 percent of Rutgers undergraduates received need-based or merit-based assistance last year – including grants, scholarships and subsidized loans – from state, federal, university and other sources.

Rutgers remains an affordable, high-quality option for New Jersey students. In addition to the university’s financial assistance programs, Rutgers’ tuition and fee charges are considerably below those of private universities and public institutions in other states – where New Jersey residents must pay the higher out-of-state rates. 

Historically, tuition increases at Rutgers have been driven by increasing expenditures (primarily negotiated personnel salaries) moderated by any increased appropriations in the annual state budget. For 2014-15, the base state appropriation for Rutgers is scheduled to remain unchanged.

Established in 1766, Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is America’s eighth oldest institution of higher learning and one of the nation’s premier public research universities, educating more than 65,000 students and serving the people of New Jersey at campuses, divisions, research centers and clinical practices throughout the state. Rutgers’ flagship, based in New Brunswick, is the only public institution in New Jersey represented in the prestigious Association of American Universities. Rutgers University is also a member of the Big Ten Conference and its academic counterpart, the Committee on Institutional Cooperation – a consortium of 15 world-class research universities.