University of Oregon Trustees Unanimously Approve Tuition Increase for Incoming Students

Incoming University of Oregon freshmen will pay $14,531.85 per year in in-state tuition starting this summer, after the university's 17-member Board of Trustees voted unanimously on March 17 to approve the third consecutive annual tuition increase.

The 4.5% in-state increase and 3% out-of-state increase apply to students entering UO between summer 2026 and spring 2027. Those rates, drawn directly from Board of Trustees meeting minutes, will be locked for five cohort years under the Oregon Guarantee, the fixed-tuition program UO established in 2020. Out-of-state undergraduates will pay $44,523 annually. Current students are unaffected; their rates were locked when they enrolled.

Translated to the classroom, the increases add roughly $55 to the cost of a four-credit course for in-state students and about $115 for nonresidents, equivalent to approximately $14 and $43 more per credit hour, respectively.

UO Chief Financial Officer Jamie Moffitt framed the steeper in-state percentage increase as a structural consequence of how the university funds itself. "We are cross-subsidizing resident students with non-resident tuition and so that's why you're getting a recommendation that has a higher rate increase on the resident side," she said. Moffitt said the tuition revenue is needed primarily to cover rising personnel costs, with the university projecting a $22.2 million net increase in education and general fund expenses for fiscal year 2027, which begins July 1, even after savings from last year's budget cuts.

UO already holds the highest tuition of Oregon's seven public universities and receives the lowest state appropriation per resident student among those same institutions. President Karl Scholz connected the steady rate increases directly to that funding dynamic. "Oregon state government has had many kind of fiscal challenges and cutting or not funding universities is always a possibility because oh they can raise tuition and so we've said steady increases in tuition," he said.

The increases matched the recommendation from UO's Tuition Fee Advisory Board, which held a public forum for students and faculty last month before proposing the raise. One-time matriculation fees for incoming students will also climb by $24, moving from $545.35 to $569.89, a 4.5% increase matching the in-state tuition rate. Mandatory student fees are expected to rise just under 3%, and graduate tuition changes will vary by program, ranging from no increase to 4%.

Not every trustee was comfortable with the trajectory. Some voiced concern that higher nonresident sticker prices could deter out-of-state applicants, creating longer-term enrollment and revenue risks. Board Chair Steve Holwerda acknowledged the tension. "We are starting to learn the last couple years that we feel like we're bumping up against the ceiling," he said. "It could just be because of competition. It may not be because of price. It could be because of value. But we're watching that." Holwerda added that finding the right price point involves trial and error and that while interest in UO remains strong, the profile of students the university attracts has shifted.

The 4.5% in-state increase is the largest in at least three years. The board approved a 3.75% in-state increase in May 2025 and a 3% increase in March 2024.