Keeping systemwide tuition and fees stable and predictable for UC students
The University of California Board of Regents approved the multiyear Tuition Stability Plan on July 22, 2021. The plan took effect in fall 2022 and helps students and families budget for a UC education by keeping systemwide tuition and fees stable and predictable and providing new resources for financial aid.
Under the Tuition Stability Plan, tuition is adjusted for each incoming undergraduate class but subsequently remains flat until the student graduates, for up to six years. For undergraduates who first enrolled prior to fall 2022, tuition stays flat at the 2021–22 rate through 2026–27. For graduate students, tuition is adjusted annually on a uniform basis (for new and continuing students alike), as opposed to an incoming cohort basis.
Regents reauthorize Tuition Stability Plan
The reauthorized plan, like the original plan, includes modest and predictable tuition and fee increases for new incoming undergraduate classes and for new and continuing graduate students. It uses a three-year rolling average of the California Consumer Price Index plus 1 percent, and overall increases are capped at 5 percent. The plan also allows for “banking” of any amount over the 5 percent to be used in future years. (Use of the banked amounts, which would apply to the annual tuition and fee increases of both undergraduates and graduate students, would be subject to the annual cap of 5 percent.) The latest plan takes effect in fall 2026 and will be up for reauthorization by the Board by summer 2033. Any changes to the plan would be expected to apply to the subsequent academic year, 2033–34.
How does the plan help families with college costs?
By minimizing unexpected increases in tuition and reducing uncertainty about the cost of their education, students and families can better calculate and plan for the costs of attending UC.
More than half of current California resident undergraduates have all their UC tuition and fees fully covered by grants and scholarships. This plan allows UC to provide even more financial support to its low-income undergraduates for food, books and other necessities.
For other families, the plan provides assurance that UC will be able to continue to provide the same world-class education it always has while enrolling a growing number of California students and making the University accessible to students from all backgrounds and economic means.
The Tuition Stability Plan provides predictability for families while allowing the University to provide greater financial aid for the majority of UC’s lowest-income students, preserve the excellence of its academic and research programs, and expand enrollment of California students.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Tuition Stability Plan?
The Tuition Stability Plan is a multiyear plan that first took effect in fall 2022. It sets tuition and other mandatory systemwide fees for undergraduates (both freshmen and transfer students) at the time of enrollment, with the expectation that those charges should remain at that same level each following year for the duration of their college careers, for up to six academic years. For graduate students, annual tuition adjustments apply uniformly to new and continuing students.
What charges are included in the Tuition Stability Plan?
The Tuition Stability Plan includes Tuition, the Student Services Fee and undergraduate Nonresident Supplemental Tuition.
Does the Tuition Stability Plan apply to both first-year and transfer students?
Yes. As of fall 2022, both incoming first-year and transfer undergraduate students can assume that their base Tuition, Student Services Fee, and Nonresident Supplemental Tuition levels (if applicable) should remain the same for up to six academic years.
Does the plan guarantee that tuition will not change during that six-year period?
The Tuition Stability Plan is not a guarantee. Though the UC Board of Regents retains the ability to modify all student charges at any time, adjusting systemwide charges requires an action by Regents that likely would only take place under extraordinary circumstances, such as a sudden, significant shortfall in state support.
Does the plan apply to undergraduate students from outside California?
Yes. Undergraduate Nonresident Supplemental Tuition is included in the systemwide charges that are expected to stay the same once a student enrolls, for up to six academic years.
How will tuition change for incoming first-year and transfer students in fall 2026 onward?
For undergraduates, the applicable levels of Tuition, the Student Services Fee, and Nonresident Supplemental Tuition will be determined as follows. For students who enter UC in 2026–27, tuition and fees will increase by inflation plus 1 percent. The plan pins inflation to a three-year rolling average of the California Consumer Price Index, and overall increases are capped at 5 percent.
For undergraduate students who enter UC in 2027–28 and later, tuition and fees will increase by inflation plus 1 percent plus any “banked” amount. Use of any banked amount, if applicable, is subject to the annual cap of 5 percent.
You can find more information on the original and reauthorized plan (pdf).
Does the plan apply to graduate students?
For all graduate students in state-supported programs, adjustments to Tuition and the Student Services Fee will be determined as follows. In 2026–27, for new and continuing graduate students, these charges will increase by inflation plus 1 percent. The plan pins inflation to a three-year rolling average of the California Consumer Price Index, and overall increases are capped at 5 percent.
For new and continuing graduate students in 2027–28 and later, Tuition and the Student Services Fee will increase by inflation plus 1 percent plus any “banked” amount. Use of any banked amount, if applicable, is subject to the annual cap of 5 percent.
Why is the Tuition Stability Plan necessary?
Campuses rely on tuition, as well as state funding, to support the people, services and facilities that are critical to offering a world-class education and serving large numbers of students from all walks of life.
The University has and continues to enroll a growing number of California students. UC has added nearly 25,000 California undergraduates since fall 2016.
Recent proposed increases in state support have addressed some of the University’s needs, but they have not fully kept pace with enrollment growth and other rising expenses. As a result, the University faces a growing budget shortfall that could limit its ability to serve students and sustain its world-class academic and research facilities.
The Tuition Stability Plan, with its moderate and predictable adjustments to student tuition and fees, helps UC address its critical needs while providing costs that are manageable to families.
How does UC use tuition funds?
A substantial portion of new tuition revenue goes toward financial aid for California undergraduates and graduate students who need it most.
Under the reauthorized Tuition Stability Plan, 40 percent of the undergraduate Tuition and Student Services Fee increase, 20 percent of the undergraduate Nonresident Supplemental Tuition increase, 50 percent of the Tuition and Student Services Fee increase for graduate academic students, and 40 percent of the Tuition and Student Services Fee increase for graduate professional students will be set aside for financial aid.
The remaining revenue will enable the University to expand enrollment, reduce class sizes, hire faculty, enhance student support services, and upgrade instructional equipment, classrooms, laboratories and other facilities at all 10 campuses. Each of these investments are important to the student experience and UC’s efforts to provide students with a world-class education.
Why can’t UC find the money somewhere else?
UC is working to increase alternative sources of revenue, including donations and funds from commercializing its research discoveries. However, none of these sources are sufficient to meet UC’s rising costs for personnel, retiree benefits, utilities, deferred maintenance and health care. Campuses have also made extraordinary efforts to cut costs.
For example, UC has leveraged its purchasing power as a 10-campus system to drive down the cost of goods and services. Individual campuses have also consolidated and standardized administrative services; expanded the use of online courses where possible; and utilized innovative approaches to accommodate enrollment growth.
Even with these efforts, campuses require additional resources to preserve their academic and research excellence. For example, campuses have had to forego hiring more faculty and student counselors in order to cover urgent deferred maintenance needs instead.
The Tuition Stability Plan — in conjunction with predictable increases in state support —provides much-needed resources to UC campuses while also improving UC affordability for financially needy California undergraduates.