This fall, University of Kentucky students are likely to see another five percent tuition hike.
UK president Eli Capilouto will deliver the recommendation to the Board of Trustees this week.
In an email Tuesday, Capilouto said the numbers are needed to offset state higher education cuts, which have slashed UK’s budget by $55 million since 2008, along with faculty raises and other fixed costs.
While annual increases have become old hat for most students, the news is never welcome.
"It's mildly ridiculous," says UK junior Austin Vanderpool. "We just really need to completely redesign the system and where our money goes and all of that. And until that happens, I'm going to keep expecting tuition to go up."
Administration officials are also looking to soften the blow by bolstering university-funded student aid and scholarships by $11 million.
President Capilouto argues half of UK students graduate debt-free, and for the remaining 50 percent the debt is "at a level such that the difference in their salaries with a college degree compared to the salary on average of somebody with a high school degree in Kentucky... that spread is such that the return on investment is just two-three years."
In all, the state Council on Postsecondary Education has approved up to eight percent in tuition increases for all public universities over the next two years.