A Trend Emerging? Some Colleges Cut Tuition Rates

Some colleges and universities are cutting tuition rates in order to attract students and reduce sticker shock, according to a Huffington Post report. 

Virginia Beach-based Regent University, with an enrollment of nearly 6,000 students, is reducing tuition by 24 percent for its MBA program and 20 percent for undergraduate programs, according to the Huffington Post. 

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Concordia University in St. Paul, MN announced earlier this month that it will cut undergraduate tuition by $10,000 to $19,700 starting for the 2013-2014 school year, according to a news release.

A national dialogue has forced private colleges to rethink their appeal to students. High tuition rates once made small private schools seem prominent, but, according to the Huffington Post report, private schools now see an opportunity to tap into consumer's growing anxiety over increasing college costs. 

Small private schools that are cutting tuition rates hope to appeal to those looking for affordable priviate education, while many public schools continue to implement tuition hikes, according to the report. 

Media Director Cheryl Knauer of McDaniel College said that "there is nothing that I am aware of on the forefront for McDaniel in terms of cutting tuition."

However, Knauer said that this year McDaniel had the smallest percentage increase in tuition in more than 25 years. The 2012-13 tuition rate for undergraduate students is $35,800.

Knauer points out that many McDaniel students receive financial aid that offsets the cost of tuition. 

"President Casey often remarks that one of the college's top priorities is to keep a McDaniel education accessible and affordable for all deserving students," Knauer said. "With 90 percent of first-year students receiving merit and/or need-based financial aid, McDaniel continues to attract the best and brightest students regardless of their financial circumstances."