A recent report from the College Board revealed that tuition rates at both public and private universities nationwide are rising much faster than the national inflation rate. Stanford is no exception, with total tuition costs for the 2007-2008 academic year estimated at $34,800, up almost 5.5 percent from last year. The year before, tuition rates rose approximately 5.4 percent, from $31,200 to $32,994. Inflation for consumer prices rose only three percent nationwide during that time.

According to Director of Financial Aid Karen Cooper, the University’s policy of meeting 100 percent of a student’s financial need requires that the Financial Aid Office award more financial aid as tuition rates increase. For this reason, the total institutional scholarship funds available have risen $10 million from last year to $76 million.

“In theory, for families who are receiving need-based financial aid, if their financial situation hasn’t changed, then an increase in tuition will be met with an increased scholarship,” Cooper said.

Having a need-blind admissions process requires the Financial Aid Office to annually re-examine the amount of funds needed to cover the remaining financial need of all students who qualify.

“If, all of a sudden, 100 percent of the freshman class were on financial aid,” Cooper said, “we would have to [cover that].”

However, as is the case with many students who require financial aid, a combination of changing factors — including shifts in both tuition and the salaries of parents — generally results in students and parents paying a higher portion of their tuition costs from one year to the next.

“Typically, the expected parent contribution goes up slightly from year to year,” Cooper said, “but the parent contribution increases are usually less than the tuition increases.”

Each February, the University’s Board of Trustees coordinates with the Office of the Provost and the Budget Department to set the price of tuition.

The College Board’s findings have shown that rising tuition costs at public universities are directly linked to decreases in the amount of state and local support they receive. For a private university like Stanford, the amount of financial aid available to students is generally tied to the endowment of the university and the amount of gift funds the school receives from donors. According to Cooper, the biggest costs for most universities lie in faculty salaries and facilities maintenance.

While the Financial Aid Office pledges to meet the needs of students regardless of rising tuition rates, some in the student body question whether raising costs of attendance at a faster rate than inflation is really just.

“I don’t think there should be a cap, but I think the interesting thing to me is that, historically, tuition for [Stanford] students has always been like two steps ahead of inflation,” Collin Duke ‘09 said. “I just wish it would track inflation.”