Georgia university officials vote to increase tuition at 26 state institutions

ATLANTA — The University System of Georgia Board of Regents voted Tuesday to increase tuition at all 26 state institutions for the coming academic year.

According to a statement from USG, in-state undergraduate tuition will increase 2.5% and out-of-state tuition will go up 5%.

Additionally, the USG announced that a third tuition level will be established for international students, at a 2% mark-up compared to other out-of-state students.

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The change in tuition prices comes amid what USG said were escalating costs for people, goods and services, as well as increased competition from the private sector for talent and increasing inflation putting pressure on budgets at the state’s public universities and colleges.

“This comes as the Board kept tuition flat at all but one USG institution for six of the past eight years,” USG said in a statement. “USG’s strong commitment to keeping college affordable for students in Georgia has meant average tuition increases for an undergraduate, in-state Georgia student over the past eight years have been less than 1%, well below the rate of inflation.”

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The Board of Regents thanked Gov. Brian Kemp and the Georgia General Assembly for helping them eliminate a “special institutional fee” that students had been charged every year since 209, which had originally been created to provide financial support for high-quality academic programs in the wake of the Great Recession.

Removal of the fee happened while keeping tuition “flat” in the 2022-2023 academic year, which USG said saved students between $340 to $1,088 depending on where they were enrolled.

“Maintaining affordability is one of the highest priorities of the university system and the Board of Regents,” USG Chancellor Sonny Perdue said in a statement. “We are a good deal for Georgians, and we have worked to protect that value particularly for our Georgia undergraduates as we balance affordability with institutional sustainability and academic quality. Our institutions face increasing costs to operate, and we must sustain their momentum as some of the best in the nation at helping students succeed on campus and in the workforce.”

A full list of tuition costs for each institution can be found online.

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