The university announced Monday that it will phase out its fixed tuition program for incoming on-campus undergraduate students beginning in fall 2020. Returning GW undergraduate students and those entering this fall or spring are unaffected.
“The university is reviewing all aspects of the undergraduate student experience to identify areas for improvement. As part of this process, fixed tuition emerged as a program that is not realizing the potential envisioned, and it has an associated cost that can be put to better use,” said GW President Thomas LeBlanc. “While there will be no immediate impact, phasing out fixed tuition will create discretion in future budgets for the university to continue to improve the student experience.”
During the past few years, GW has worked to incorporate more discretion into its budget, which helps the university better respond to the evolving needs of its community. This flexibility recently allowed the university to, for example, invest an additional $10 million in campus improvements to support a community-oriented culture and benefit the student, faculty and staff experience.
The fixed tuition change will bring the university in line with the vast majority of other institutions when it comes to setting tuition. GW is the only school in its market basket with a fixed tuition program.
GW will be moving to the model of pricing that most other universities are using, with tuition rates set on an annual basis. Housing and dining rates will continue to be set on an annual basis.
The university also will continue to review financial aid packages every year for students receiving need-based financial aid, taking into account any changes in the cost of attendance and adjusting need-based aid yearly. Last year, the university also began setting tuition rates in October for the following year to allow students and families more time to plan for education expenses. The university also will continue its commitment to moderating the overall cost of attendance and limiting tuition increases.