Temple raising tuition by $600

Temple University undergraduates will pay $600 more in tuition in the fall.

In-state students will pay $14,006 in tuition, up from $13,406, and those from out of state will pay $24,032, up from $23,432.

Mandatory student-activity fees, assessed on top of tuition, will remain at $690.

The university's trustees approved the new tuition schedule at their meeting on Thursday. They also increased funding for student financial aid by more than $9.6 million. The amount set aside to aid students now totals approximately $100 million.

Sixty percent of Temple's first-year students receive aid based on financial need. The university said all students are considered for academic scholarships.

When aid is considered, the average undergraduate tuition increase will be about $233, or 1.84 percent, the university said.

"Temple University remains committed to increasing access to affordable higher education and to limiting student debt," president Neil D. Theobald said in a statement. "We are very sensitive to the national crisis of student indebtedness and are attacking the issue from a variety of angles, including keeping tuition as low as possible."

Several months ago, Temple announced it would offer incoming students from low-income families $4,000 annual grants to help cover costs, if they agree to limit their off-campus jobs to 10 hours a week.

Called "Fly in 4," the grant program aims to help students earn degrees in four years by reducing their need to work.

Temple's $1.26 billion budget includes $139.9 million from the state, which has provided flat funding for three years.

The tuition increase at Temple is slightly higher than those announced by other area universities.

Penn State trustees approved an increase of nearly 3 percent, while the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education authorized a 3 percent increase for the 14 state universities.

The board of governors at Rutgers University announced Wednesday that the typical Rutgers student will pay 2.2 percent more in the next academic year.