Winthrop University students will pay about 5 percent more in tuition and fees for the 2010-2011 school year.
The executive committee of the school's Board of Trustees on Tuesday approved the increased costs as part of the $90 million 2010-2011 budget.
Here's how the hikes will affect students:
In-state undergraduates living on campus will pay $9,444 - $376 more than they paid in 2009-2010. Students in their first and second years are required to live on campus.
Out-of-state students living on campus will pay $14,802 - an increase of $739.
In-state undergraduates living off campus will pay $6,088 - a $285 increase.
Out-of-state undergraduates living off campus will pay $11,446 - up $648.
Full-time, in-state graduate students will see tuition and fees increase $274, bringing costs to $5,864. Those from out of state will see an increase of $621, bringing their costs to $10,968.
In April, the Board of Trustees increased 2010-2011 residential room rates by 3.2 percent and meal plan rates by 2.1 percent.
The higher tuition and fees will generate an estimated $2.6 million, helping offset losses in state funding.
Tuition and fees account for about half of the university's $90.6 million spending plan for next year, which is down from $91.8 million in 2009-2010.
President Anthony DiGiorgio commended the trustees for keeping the increase in tuition and fees below 5 percent, pointing out that other public colleges and universities haven't been able to do the same.
Of all public universities in South Carolina, Winthrop's increase is the second-lowest by percentage. Lander University is raising tuition and fees by 4.38 percent, according to data provided the executive board.
But Winthrop also has the second-highest tuition and fees in the state among public schools, behind only to the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston.
DiGiorgio told trustees that the increase in tuition and fees could have been close to 12 percent had the university not taken measures to make up for lost revenues in other ways.
Reducing internal spending, leaving vacant jobs open and reserving revenue from last year's budget are among the ways the university has and will continue to do to minimize the impact on students.
DiGiorgio put the tuition increases into perspective.
"When this year's freshmen were born, over 45 percent of revenues that drove the university came from the state of South Carolina," he said.
Less than 10 years ago, Winthrop received more than $25 million in annual funding from the state. Next year Winthrop's state appropriation will dwindle to less than 10 percent of the university's budget at $12.8 million - down by $3.4 million from last year.
Since fall 2008, the university has lost $9.8 million due to state cuts.
"This means 90 percent of our operations will take place on a private school finance model that emphasizes enrollment growth," DiGiorgio said, adding that the university's facilities are ready for that growth.
With tuition and fees now set, the university will have to look for other ways to absorb future losses in revenue in the event of additional state budget cuts or lower enrollment than what they now expect.
One way to cope is through furloughs.
DiGiorgio told employees in April that he hopes to avoid furloughs, but if they are needed, he hopes to keep them to "no more than four or five" days.
