James Madison and William & Mary won't raise their tuition

James Madison University and the College of William & Mary are the latest public universities in Virginia to freeze their tuition rates for in-state undergraduate students.

Earlier this year, the Virginia General Assembly passed an education incentive package, which provides public universities additional funding in exchange for maintaining current tuition rates. In response, a several eligible schools have announced they will maintain current tuition rates for the 2019-20 academic year.

At James Madison, the Board of Visitors approved the decision on Friday and the school will receive $6.1 million in general funds from the state. The money will go towards faculty and staff raises, facilities operation and maintenance costs, scholarships and financial aid, maintaining the school’s 16-to-one faculty-to-student ratio and other strategic plans.

This marks the first time in 18 years that JMU hasn’t raised its tuition rate. For in-state freshman and sophomores, tuition will hold steady at $7,250 for the 2019-2020 academic year, while juniors and seniors will continue to pay $6,620. While tuition rates will remain the same for these students, they will see auxiliary costs jump by $598 if they live on campus or $190 if they commute.

After all costs are accounted for, the total in-state price will be $22,706 for freshman and sophomores and $22,076 for juniors and seniors.

All out-of-state students, meanwhile, will see a total increase of $1,098 if they live on campus or $690 if they commute, for a total cost of $39,606 for freshman and sophomores and $39,290 for juniors and seniors.

Over at William & Mary, the Board of Visitors also voted to maintain its current tuition rate of $17,434 for in-state freshman for the 2019-20 school year. The Board also agreed to guarantee that rate to incoming students for all four years and announced they would not change mandatory educational & general fees either.

In exchange, the school will receive $1.45 million in additional state funding.

The university also touted its increased in-student financial aid program, which has increased by 122% since 2013 and helped make William & Mary the least expensive public university in the state, on a net-price basis, for in-state families making under $110,000.

Thanks to the flat tuition rate, the total cost for in-state undergraduates after accounting for all additional fees will range from $34,794 to $36,554, depending on class. Out of state undergraduates students will see a 3.5% increase though, bringing the tuition to $40,089 and the total cost to $59,780.