More Universities Raising Tuition Fees... 19 Schools Have Already Decided to Increase

Among four-year general universities nationwide, 14% decided to raise undergraduate tuition fees this year. Although the government has been encouraging tuition freezes through the national scholarship system, it appears that universities judged that raising tuition would yield greater revenue as the legal limit for tuition increases was expanded.

Participants hold placards at the "Press Conference on Opposition to Tuition Fee Increase and Announcement of Survey Results" held by the National University Student Council Network and the Joint Student Movement Against Tuition Fee Increase in front of the National Assembly in Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, last October. [Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the minutes of the Tuition Deliberation Committee (Deungsimwi) meetings released by each university on the 18th and explanations from individual universities, 19 out of 137 universities, or 13.9%, decided to raise undergraduate tuition fees by the 16th. This proportion increased about 1.6 times compared to last year, when 17 out of 193 universities, or 8.8%, raised tuition. Universities that decided to raise tuition include ▲Dong-A University ▲Kyungdong University ▲Keimyung University ▲Chosun University ▲Dong-Eui University ▲Kyungsung University ▲Korean Methodist Theological University ▲Seoul Christian University ▲Youngnam Theological University ▲Chongshin University ▲Hanil Jangsin University ▲Honam Theological University.

Busan Kosin University decided on a 4.8% increase at the Deungsimwi, but the president reportedly made the final decision to freeze tuition. Among the 10 national teacher training universities nationwide, except for Seoul and Gongju National Universities of Education, which raised tuition last year, all chose to freeze tuition this year. The only university to decide to lower tuition was Cheongju University.

The increase in universities raising tuition is attributed to this year’s legal limit for tuition increases reaching a record high of 5.64%. Most universities have frozen or reduced tuition since 2009. Furthermore, since 2012, the Ministry of Education has provided National Scholarship II only to universities that freeze or reduce tuition, intensifying this trend. If tuition is raised, universities are excluded from receiving National Scholarship II support, which can amount to hundreds of millions to billions of won. However, this year, with the significant increase in the legal limit for tuition hikes, universities appear to have judged that even without receiving national scholarship support, they can compensate through increased revenue from tuition hikes.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.