Ever wonder how colleges determine next year's tuition increase? This is your chance to find out.

This tool incorporates two models of the revenue streams and expenditures at a typical college. There is one model for public state-supported institutions and one for private colleges.

The models assume that this year's budget was balanced, and asks you to specify how each budget area will change in the upcoming year. For example, instruction expense will likely increase because of faculty raises. It then calculates the impact of these changes on tuition.

• Tuition Model - Public Colleges
• Tuition Model - Private Colleges

For additional information, please see the FinAid Research Report, Causes of faster-than-inflation increases in college tuition.

A paper about the tuition model appeared in AACRAO's peer-reviewed journal College & University:

Mark Kantrowitz, Causes of Faster-than-Inflation Increases in College Tuition, College & University Journal, 78(2):3-10, Fall 2002.