College Tuition and Fees

Changes in the 1995-96 to 1999-2000 Period Compared With Median Household Income Gao ID: HEHS-00-198R September 26, 2000

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO provided information on college tuition and fees, focusing on the changes in the 1995-1996 and 1999-2000 period compared with median household income.

GAO noted that: (1) in the 4 years since GAO's last report on tuition increases, private colleges have continued to become less affordable when compared to median household income while public colleges have become slightly more affordable; (2) four-year private college tuition and fees increased 31 percent in the 5 years ending in academic year 1999-2000, a faster rate than median household income and the Consumer Price Index; and (3) the 25-percent increase at both 2-year and 4-year public colleges was slightly less than the increase in median household income but about twice the increase of the CPI.



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