NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ – Rutgers University students will see a 4% increase in tuition and mandatory student fees for the 2024-25 academic year, following a vote by the Rutgers Board of Governors on Monday. This translates to an average increase of $274 per semester in tuition and $63 in fees for in-state arts and sciences undergraduate students.
Housing rates and resident education fees are also set to rise by 6% on the New Brunswick and Newark campuses, with an 8% increase in dining plan rates. Rutgers-Camden students will see a steeper 11% hike in dining plan costs.
These increases come as the university grapples with a projected $41.3 million deficit, attributed to factors such as negotiated salary increases, rising health care premiums and pension contributions, need-based student financial aid, and increased costs for supplies, travel, and contracted services, according to J. Michael Gower, Rutgers’ executive vice president, chief financial officer, and treasurer.
The $5.6 billion budget approved by the board allocates 77% of funds to student instruction, research, public service, and health care, while 15% is earmarked for administration, operations, and maintenance. Athletics programs will receive approximately 3% of the budget.
Tuition and fees account for 27% of the university’s revenue, with state funding contributing 21%. Other sources of revenue include health care services (20%), sponsored research (15%), and miscellaneous sources such as housing, dining, parking, student aid, athletics, gifts, donations, endowment income, and investment income (17%).
Despite the increases, Rutgers remains committed to providing financial support to its students. Approximately 75% of undergraduate students receive some form of financial aid, such as the Scarlet Guarantee program in New Brunswick.
Board chair Amy Towers affirmed the university’s dedication to accessibility and financial responsibility: “We’re committed to providing access to an excellent academic experience and this budget reflects the commitment while meeting our financial responsibilities.”
Rutgers President Jonathan Holloway echoed this sentiment, emphasizing the budget’s role in supporting the university’s core mission: “The budget is prudently planned to allow us to meet rising costs while continuing to do what Rutgers does best: provide our students with exceptional academic, research and public service opportunities as they pursue their education and become engaged citizens.”
