NCTA tuition freezes at $139 per credit hour

May 9, 2020

From NCTA News and the University of Nebraska

LINCOLN, Neb. – Tuition rates for the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture will remain at $139 per credit hour for the next three academic years, beginning this fall. The rate is the same for in-state and out-of-state residents.

University of Nebraska President Ted Carter announced May 7 that tuition rates across the NU system will be frozen in the 2021-22 and 2022-23 school years, another step to ensure affordability and predictability for students and families as they plan for the future.

The two-year tuition freeze in the next biennium – the first back-to-back, across-the-board freeze in recent history at the University of Nebraska – applies to all NU campuses in Curtis, Kearney, Lincoln and Omaha.

With the freeze, an NU education is a top value – a critical commitment to Nebraskans at a time when higher education is increasingly linked to individual growth and economic prosperity.

“Now, more than ever, the affordability, accessibility and excellence of a University of Nebraska education must be our North Star,” Carter said. “We know this is an uncertain time, and we want to do everything we can to take care of the people of Nebraska and give them a sense of predictability about what’s ahead.

Rates for the next three academic years will be:

·         Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture: $139

·         University of Nebraska at Kearney: $209

·         University of Nebraska at Omaha: $235

·         University of Nebraska-Lincoln: $259

“This two-year tuition freeze represents our commitment to current and future students of the University of Nebraska. Now they know exactly what they will pay in tuition to attend our campuses. And, it’s a promise to our state. Job growth will return. When it does, we’ll have a strong pipeline of skilled workers ready to lead Nebraska into the future.”

A 2.75 percent tuition increase beginning this fall had been approved by the Board of Regents last year. While the university system faces significant budget challenges resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, all campuses and Central Administration will tighten their belts rather than seek further increases from students and families, Carter said. Steps already underway include a system-wide hiring freeze, limits on spending and a review of all construction projects.

Carter also previously launched the Nebraska Promise, an expansion of the NU system’s existing need-based financial aid program that will cover full tuition costs for Nebraska students with family incomes of $60,000 or less. The Nebraska Promise is expected to cover an additional 1,000 current and future students.

All NU campuses will be open in the fall for in-person learning, making adjustments to ensure safety.

“These are challenging times, but as I have quickly come to learn, Nebraskans are problem-solvers, not problem-gazers,” Carter said. “We have an opportunity now to lean in to our priorities – the first of which is affordable excellence for the people of Nebraska – so that we emerge even stronger, even more relevant, and even more ready to meet the needs of our state and the world.