Hopkins administrators predict that there will be another increase in tuition next year in order to fund the University through the economic recession.
The final decision will be made before the spring, when the exact percentage of the increase will be determined.
"Since the stock market has not fully rebounded, sources of other revenue will remain constrained, and so some level of tuition increase will likely be necessary," Dean of Undergraduate Education and Vice Provost Paula Burger wrote in an e-mail to The News-Letter.
Whiting School Dean Nicholas Jones confirmed the likelihood of a tuition increase.
"We go into this process with an open mind, but generally assuming . . . we will need to have an increase," Jones said.
The University has seen increased utilities costs, reduction in state aid and decline in the endowment income.
According to Burger, when it comes time to determine the percentage of the increase, Hopkins will be sensitive to how students and their families may be struggling with finances.
"We intend to limit the increase to only that which is absolutely necessary to protect the quality of our academic and student life programs, and of course financial aid will remain the central priority in determining the budget for next year," she wrote.
Last year tuition at Hopkins increased by 3.8 percent - the University's smallest increase in 35 years.
The increase was also less than the national average for both private institutions - which saw a 4.4 percent increase - and public institutions, which saw a 6.5 percent increase, according to analysis from Campus Grotto.
"The biggest factor was to keep tuition as low as possible. That's why there was a reduction in the percentage increase from previous years," said Jerome Schnydman, Secretary of the Board of Trustees and the Executive Assistant to the President.
The process of determining how much tuition will be increased each year is set by policies established by the Board of Trustees.
"We basically do a top-to-bottom assessment of the costs of the educational programs that we want to provide in the Krieger School and the Whiting School of Engineering," Jones said.
In addition to considering these factors, Hopkins must estimate what those costs will be in the subsequent year. Any increase is first discussed and negotiated internally before being submitted to the Trustees for approval.
"At the end of the day it's that rational analysis of all of those factors, with suitable projections looking into the next year that guides what our tuition request to the Trustees is," Jones said.
"The crucial consideration is balancing what we are asking families to pay against making sure we have the resources to offer the education, and the overall experience, that undergraduates have come to expect from Johns Hopkins," Dean of the Krieger School Adam Falk wrote in an email to The News-Letter.
The University has taken action to reduce costs, including freezes on hiring and salary, and making significant cuts to operating budgets in all departments.
In spite of this, Falk wrote that Hopkins "felt that a tuition increase was necessary if we were not to see the quality of our education suffer in ways that would have been unacceptable to our students and faculty."
According to Burger, the only increases to the budget this year were financial aid for undergraduates and stipends for graduate students.
Some students feel that the university was right to increase tuition.
"If it's something that will keep the institution at the top, then I am willing to pay for a tuition increase," freshman Dillon Brout said. "Considering it's foundation was research, and that requires a lot of money, then I can understand it being so expensive."
"It doesn't affect me much, because I have a scholarship, but I can see why other people are concerned" undergraduate Kevin Chen said.
"They've been cutting so many things, like athletics. They've also cut their salaries, so they're definitely making steps."
Other students are not as satisfied.Sophomore Mike Zaccardo found the tuition increase, "a little bit frustrating because I'm not that impressed with the professors. I should feel like I'm being taught more and teaching myself less considering how expensive it is."
Zaccardo was worried about the burden the tuition increase will place on his parents, who are funding his education.
"It does put more of a burden on students, because I don't know how comprehensive the financial aid is," junior Maria Granato said.
Hopkins has the 29th highest tuition in the United States but is the 6th most expensive college in terms of total costs, according to Campus Grotto.
However, these numbers do not account for financial aid.
When tuition increased 3.8 percent, the Office of the Financial Aid saw an 8 percent increase to their budget.
"The additional funding allowed us to offset the increase in tuition for students with financial need. In addition, it also provided support for students whose families were hit by the economic downturn," Vincent Amaroso, Director of Student Financial Services, wrote in an e-mail to The News-Letter.
"Whether a family had an increase in need or this was the first time they applied for financial aid, we were able to help them."
"President Daniels and the Deans are deeply committed to enhancing our financial aid programs and that it is in fact a key fundraising priority," Burger wrote.
A recent report by the College Board found that this year's tuition has increased for students at both public and private universities across the country.
But Jennifer Ma, who co-wrote the Trends in College Pricing 2009 report, pointed out that when they are looked at over the last five years, net college costs actually went down.
"What we want to look at is the net price, which is after grant aid is subtracted from published prices," Ma said.
Jane Wellman, Executive Director of The Delta Project on Postsecondary Education Costs, Productivity, and Accountability thinks there are several ways to restructure and reduce operating costs of colleges and universities.
"One of the biggest areas of increased spending in most colleges and universities has been employee benefits. We have a little bit of a version in many places, not all, of the Chrystler-GM problem where 30 to 40 percent of the cost goes to pay for very rich pension programs," she said.
Wellman also thinks that colleges should consider modifying or shutting down expensive programs if there is little demand for them from students, and reduce faculty pay for their research.
"It might be more cost effective to have a smaller proportion of faculty who are expected to do research, and a teaching faculty who are hired and rewarded for that function," she said.
But Wellman emphasized that costs should not be cut by hiring part time faculty.
"When faculty are part-time, they are less likely to be working with students on high-impact educational practices," she said.
With increases in tuition, there is often the concern that students from low-income families will be deterred from attending college.
Studies have found that students from such backgrounds are less likely to apply to colleges with high tuitions if they are not aware of financial aid availability.
"The entire situation is intimidating to those who do not realize that a robust financial aid program is available, and that we are committed to the idea that students from all economic backgrounds should be able to attend Hopkins," Falk wrote.
Jones said that the Baltimore Scholars program is one example of how Hopkins is providing information to students from low-income families.
"Locally, in Baltimore, we look for opportunities to publicize the fact that if you are accepted to Johns Hopkins, the cost of the education should not be an issue," he said.
Burger also emphasized the University's efforts to provide information about financial aid to all applicants.
"All of our admissions presentations and materials try to highlight the fact that our goal is to ensure that access to a Hopkins education is not a factor of the ability to pay," she said.
