Penn raises tuition, other costs 4%, while expanding full financial aid to more families

Full costs to attend the University of Pennsylvania for the 2023-24 academic year will climb 4% to $84,600 under a plan endorsed Thursday by the board of trustees.

That marks a return to pre-pandemic percentage increases. The last two years, the board kept percentage increases below 3%.

But the university said it also plans to expand its full aid program to families who make less than $75,000 with “typical assets” — the threshold is currently $65,500. Under the plan, Penn also will provide students in that group with summer internships, tuition and research funding, stipends for food during Thanksgiving and winter breaks when dining halls are closed, graduation regalia, and grant funding to cover the cost of Penn’s health insurance plan, the university said. And first-year students will get a laptop.

With the increased income threshold, more than 1,200 students will qualify for the full tuition, fees and room and board aid, the university said. That’s out of an undergraduate enrollment that tops 10,400.

» READ MORE: Total annual costs at Penn to exceed $80,000 for the first time

“This expansion of Penn’s undergraduate financial aid program will make the path to Penn possible for hundreds of additional students each year,” Penn president Liz Magill said in a statement. “As student and family need increases, so do our efforts to not only meet that need, but to deliver resources and opportunities that amplify the Penn experience.”

The university said it increased its financial aid budget 12% to $286 million to help cover the expanded program.

Citing “high levels of inflation, especially for compensation,” the board also endorsed a $3,260, or 4%, increase in total costs for other students. That includes $58,620 for tuition, $7,484 for fees, $12,166 for housing, and $6,330 for dining.

Last year, the university raised total costs 2.9% to $81,340. At that time, a Penn vice president said percentage increases in costs would be larger in subsequent years. At that time, he projected 3.5%.

» READ MORE: Penn touts 2.8% tuition hike as lowest percentage increase in more than 50 years

For 2021-22, Penn raised tuition 2.8%, which it touted at the time as the lowest increase in more than 50 years.

In February 2020, just before the pandemic shutdown, the board hiked total costs 3.9%. The prior year, it also was 3.9%.

Penn said 44.4% of its undergraduates receive aid at an average of $61,961. The average aid package covers 73% of a student’s total costs, the school said, including books and supplies, transportation, and other personal expenses.

In 2007-08, more than three-quarters of students who received need-based financial aid took out loans; now, it’s 19%, Penn said.