Board Approves 2008–09 Budget & Tuition

July 17, 2008

Members of the Rutgers Community:
 

Earlier today, the university's Board of Governors adopted a working budget of $1.8 billion for the 2008–09 academic year. The board also established tuition, fee, and room and board rates for the new term.  For most students, tuition and required fees will rise by 8.0 percent while housing and dining charges will increase by about 5 percent under the plan approved by the board this morning. An in-state Arts and Sciences undergraduate living on the New Brunswick Campus, for example, will see his or her total charges rise by 6.5 percent this fall.

Tuition rates at Rutgers are based on appropriations in the annual state budget, as well as mandatory cost increases for personnel salaries, fuel and utilities, and other items. As I noted in my most recent email to the community, the state budget for 2008–09 includes a 10.8 percent reduction in base state appropriations for our three campuses, along with partial funding of negotiated salary increases. 
 
To ensure that the educational opportunities offered by Rutgers remain accessible to as many deserving students as possible, the Board of Governors allocated an additional $2.6 million in university funds for student financial aid in 2008–09. Increased state funding for the Tuition Aid Grant and Educational Opportunity Fund programs will also help maintain the affordability of a Rutgers education. 

Beyond the increased charges for students, our entire university community will be called upon to address the significant loss in state support this year. Reflecting the recommendations of the Budget Advisory Committee and other representative campus organizations, our attention will focus on a variety of cost-saving measures in the coming months: strategic budget cuts in administrative, instructional, and support units; continued efficiency gains across the university; and deferrals of certain non-essential expenditures. We will also continue to identify new sources of revenues to reduce the university's reliance on state support in the future. 

The new academic year brings us many challenges as well as opportunities. While difficult choices lie ahead, I am confident that all of us—faculty, staff, students, and administrators—will rise to the occasion to maintain Rutgers' position of excellence in New Jersey higher education.

Thank you for all that you do for Rutgers.

Richard L. McCormick
President
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey