🎓 College Tuition History

🎓 College Tuition History

Definition: The cost of attending a public four-year university has risen from $243/year in 1963 to $11,750 in 2025 — a 4,735% increase, far outpacing general inflation (which would predict roughly $2,400 today). College tuition is the poster child for above-inflation cost growth in the US economy.
History & Analysis: Driven by reduced state funding, administrative bloat, easy federal loans, and the ‘amenities arms race.’ Student loan debt now exceeds $1.7 trillion. The tuition inflation rate of roughly 7% annually means costs double every 10 years.