Higher Ed Utah

(Chronicle of Higher Education) – Budgetary stresses of the past year have left many public colleges financially weaker, despite above-average increases in enrollment and growth in tuition revenue per student, a new report from Moody’s Investors Service shows.

The report, “U.S. Public University Medians for Fiscal Year 2009 Show Tuition Pricing Power Amidst Rising Challenges,” also highlights how colleges’ debt burdens have continued to mount.

The median level of debt for 200-plus public institutions rated by Moody’s—$176.9-million as of the end of the 2009 fiscal year—has grown by 31 percent over four years. That’s notably greater than the rate of revenue growth (25 percent), total financial resource growth (15 percent), and enrollment growth (13 percent) during that same period.

For the first time, colleges’ debt per student ($13,665) exceeded their financial resources per student ($12,893).

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