The bad news: California State University trustees have approved a 10 percent increase in undergraduate and graduate student fees for the coming school year. The increase of $306 a year for undergraduates will bring average annual basic fees to $3,354 beginning in this fall, compared with the present $3,048, according to the Los Angeles Times.
The borderline good news: The least expensive campus in the 23-school system, based on on-campus housing, food, books, transportation and other expenses, is still CSU Bakersfield (a mere $15,891 annually). Highest is San Diego State ($20,388).
The fee increase is intended to help offset state cuts in the system’s $2.6 billion budget, including $96 million in 2008-09 and an additional $57 million for 2009-10. Things will get worse if education funding propositions on the May 19 ballot fail.
In other words, things will almost surely get worse -- just in time, practically, for my eldest to head off to college. Of course, if she doesn't figure out calculus, it may be a moot point.
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Speaking from experience with two kids in college, $16k annual for a Cal State education is a bargain by any standard. It's a lot of money, true, but cheap when compared to what you get outside California for the money. Still a bargain ...
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