University of Illinois Increases Tuition, Fee & Housing Rates for 2022/23

The University of Illinois Board of Trustees approved the proposed increase in tuition, fee, and housing costs for the 2022/23 academic year for all incoming in-state freshmen, beginning this fall.

The board gave approval to a 1.8 percent increase on tuition for the incoming freshmen at Urbana-Champaign and Chicago campuses as well as a 1.5 percent hike in Springfield campus. Meanwhile, out-of-state and international freshmen will see a tuition increase of 2.5 percent at the Urbana-Champaign and under 2 percent at the Chicago campus.

The university has decided to increase the base tuition for in-state students by $220 at the Urbana-Champaign campus, meaning $12,474 annually, and by $194 at the Chicago campus, which means $10,970 per year.

Board chairperson Don Edwards said that any increased tuition is difficult; however, he described the proposal as “extremely persuasive.”

At the same time, most of the graduate students will also have to pay more tuition, as the increase for them will range from 1.5 to 2.5 percent, Erudera.com reports.

“These recommendations acknowledge the financial needs of the colleges after a long period of tuition freeze while being mindful of the need to maintain access and affordability for students,” the document for Board of Trustees noted.

As NBC Chicago reports, the President of the University of Illinois System, Tim Killeen, said that the modest increases would ensure that the university can further maintain the levels of excellence that have led to high enrollment over the years.

In addition, housing costs will also increase by around 2 percent, reaching $11,598 annually at the Urbana-Champaign and about 3 percent or $12,206 a year at the Chicago campus. Furthermore, the proposal has foreseen a rise in student fees, which will be increasing to $1,620 in Urbana-Champaign and $1,710 in Chicago.

This is the second tuition increase in eight years at the University of Illinois. The last time, the university approved a tuition increase in January 2020 for in-state undergraduate students. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the board decided to approve some funding to pay these costs for students.

Almost 95,000 students, of them some 60,000 undergraduates from Illinois, are enrolled at the three university campuses. According to the university, about 30 percent of Illinois students did not have to pay tuition through the university’s financial assistance.

University says that nearly 1 in 3 Illinois resident undergraduate students have their tuition and fees fully covered. 66 percent or 35,079 of all undergraduate students at the University of Illinois System received financial aid during fall 2020, an increase from 59 percent in fall 2019.