US: Public universities predict hefty tuition hikes

Budget-strapped public universities are predicting significant tuition increases at a time when private universities are doing everything to maintain or even lower tuition rates during the recession, experts say, writes Jeanette Der Bedrosian in USA Today.

Though 2009-10 tuition rates have not been set for most public universities, increases of at least 5% to 6% - and in many cases higher - are expected as university administrators struggle to maintain quality education amid state budget cuts.

"State budgets are in turmoil," says Terry Hartle, Senior Vice-President for the American Council on Education, an organisation that lobbies on behalf of higher education administrators. "It's a balancing act. Just about every revenue source that colleges have is under distress." The sources include state budgets, tuition income and endowments.
Full report on the USA Today site