These top New England colleges cost $90K or more to attend each year

Various private higher education institutions in New England are seeing an all-time high for attendance costs this fall, with annual costs of $90,000 or more.

Three Massachusetts based institutions have joined the growing list of facilities weighing in at the $90,000 price point, in addition to a few other Mass. colleges already costing students around that much.

Education Data Initiative recently reported Massachusetts as having the highest average yearly tuition of $47,980 for private institutions.

Institutions like Tufts University in Somerville, Wellesley College and Boston University are well above that — racking up tuition prices starting at $61,000 a year — not including fees or insurance.

When accounting for those expenses, attendance costs for these institutions skyrocket to as much as $95,000 a year.

These institutions have earned a spot on the list of most expensive universities in New England, surpassing Ivy League universities like Yale in Connecticut, which costs $87,150 a year, and Harvard at $82,866.

Whether rising costs are related to inflation or low endowments, these universities lead the pack in overall costs to students.

According to its official website, Wellesley College tuition costs for fall 2024 and spring 2025 combine for a total of $66,880 per year — not including health insurance, student fees, room and board or a meal plan.

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With all expenses included, it costs $92,060 a year to attend Wellesley College.

In an article published by Boston 25 News, Wellesley College attendance was reported to cost $81,000 for the academic year of 2022-2023 with a tuition of $61,584.

Since the 2022 report, attendance costs have increased by more than $10,000.

“Ninety thousand dollars clearly is a lot of money,” Wellesley College economics professor Phillip Levine told Associated Press. “But for most people, that is not how much they’re going to pay. The existence of a very generous financial aid system lowers that cost substantially.”

According to Wellesley.edu, nearly 60% of students receive financial aid and the average aid offer is more than $65,000 — lowering the cost to nearly $30,000.

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However, in an article published by AP earlier this year, it was reported that the U.S Education Department discovered a calculation error in hundreds of thousands of financial aid applications sent out to colleges in March.

The miscalculation leaves many prospective students facing delays in knowing how much aid they will be offered by colleges as institutions rely on information from the U.S Education Department to determine financial aid packages for students.

“People should be making educational decisions based on the actual cost they have to pay, not their perceived cost,” Levine told the AP. “The problem is that the sticker price is the easiest number to know.”

With the delay in U.S Department of Education financial aid offers, colleges have less time to make financial aid offers to students and students have less time to decide where to enroll.

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Tufts University: $95,888

Tufts University tuition for FY 2024-2025 is among the most expensive, with a tuition cost of $68,946.

When accounting for student fees, room and board, health insurance and other expenses, Tufts University costs $95,888 a year to attend.

In 2023, The Tufts Daily reported that the University was already “well above the national average for private colleges,” and was ranked the most expensive university in Massachusetts and fifth most expensive in the country as reported by Boston.com.

At that time, tuition cost was $66,358 per year, with a total attendance cost of $89,584, as per Tufts.edu.

Within one school year, total costs have increased by over $6,000.

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According to College Board, the average financial aid package for students attending Tufts University is approximately $56,500 per year — reducing attendance costs to about $30,000 – $40,000 for about 35% of students.

The Tufts Daily attributes the University’s above average tuition rates to lower endowments than its peer universities within the commonwealth — a concern the publication claims the University has been grappling with for over two decades.

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To put things into perspective, in fall 2023 Tufts University reported a total enrollment of 11,953 full-time students achieving a graduate or undergraduate degree. As of June 30, 2023, Tufts University endowment was $2.4 billion.

Wellesley College reported an enrollment of 2,335 full-time student for fall 2023, and an endowment of $2.889 billion.

As of June 30, 2023, Boston University endowment at $3.2 billion, with an enrollment of 29,251 full-time students.

Boston University, $90,207

Boston University is following suit in increasing tuition costs.

In 2023-2024, tuition cost was $63,798 per year, but is now $66,670 — reflecting a $2,872 increase.

When accounting for health insurance, room and board, meal plans, student fees and other expenses, Boston University costs $90,207 a year to attend in 2024-2025.

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BU Daily previously reported that the University saw a 4.25% tuition “hike” in 2022 – the largest increase in 14 years.

Since then, tuition has seen a consistent annual increase.

Then University President, Robert A. Brown was reported to have sent out an end of year letter to faculty and staff addressing the substantial increase, according to BU Daily.

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“By far, my greatest immediate concern is the impact of inflation on faculty and staff, our students, and the University,” Brown wrote. “This increase does not keep pace with the current national rate of inflation.”

According to BU Daily, Brown cited a number of factors for the decision, including inflation rates and cost of living increases.

Amherst College, $91,930

Amherst College attendance costs for full-time, resident students in FY 2024-2025 start at $91,930 for direct, billed expenses — not including personal expenses and travel at an estimated cost of $2,440.

While this amount includes tuition, housing, meals, fees and insurance, according to Amherstcollege.edu, “a year of education at the College actually costs approximately $134,000,” — though, endowments, grants and gifts supply the difference between that price and what attendees are actually billed.

In 2023-2024, tuition was reported to cost $66,650, and is $69,820 as of FY 2024-2025 ― reflecting a $3,170 tuition increase within one school year.

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However, according to College Board, the average financial aid package for students attending Amherst College in 2023-2024 was $69,267 — reducing costs to about $18,809 a year for approximately 57% of students.

This data is consistent with Amherst College’s FY 2022-2023 report which states 56% of students received financial aid for FY 2022-2023, at an average of $66,000 or more.

Smith College, $90,762

Smith College annual attendance costs for FY 2023-2024 was reported as $90,762 for directly billed expenses and an estimated $3,240 for out of pocket expenses like books and transportation.

Tuition alone costs $64,870.

Brown University, (in R.I.), $91,676

Tuition for Brown University for the FY 2024-2025 is $68,612.

When accounting for room and board, tuition and other fees, total attendance costs are $91,676 for full-time students living on campus, according to its official website.

In FY 2023-2024, tuition cost $65,656 — reflecting a $2,956 increase in tuition costs for FY 2024-2025.

For a 20 week meal plan, tuition, insurance, dorm costs and other fees, overall attendance costs for Brown University for FY 2023-2024 was $89,464 — reflecting a $2,212 increase for attendance costs for FY 2024-2025.

Dartmouth College, (in N.H.), $91,312

Students attending Dartmouth College in New Hampshire during the 2024-2025 school year can expect to pay $91,312, including direct and indirect expenses, as reported on its official website.

Tuition is $66,123

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