3/09/04—The Boston College Board of Trustees has approved a 6.1% increase in the Law School’s tuition for the 2004-2005 academic year at its February meeting, to a total of $31,520. The increase compares with a 6.9% increase at the undergraduate level, and is identical to the increase for the Carroll School of Management. The increase is also comparable to or less than that of competitor schools.

In addition to the tuition increase, financial aid has been increased by a nearly commensurate amount, considering an anticipated reduction in the total size of the student body. Overall enrollment at the Law School will drop to 800 students. The Law School had asked the University to consider dropping enrollment to decrease class sizes and allow for greater selectivity.

“We’re very pleased that the Board of Trustees has agreed to move our enrollment to 800,” said BC Law Spokesman Nate Kenyon. “While allowing our faculty to give individual students a little bit more of their time, it will also help us stretch our available financial aid dollars to help our students who are struggling to meet tuition costs.”

The tuition increase across the board is consistent with competitor schools, said University spokesperson Jack Dunn. “It is necessary to attract and retain the nation's best faculty, to provide students with the latest technology in their classrooms, and to help fulfill our commitment to having the best facilities and programs for the sake of our students," Dunn said.

Even after the increase, BC Law’s tuition remains equal to or lower than many of its competitors. Of the Law School’s six main competitor schools, Cornell Law has the highest tuition at $36,100, a 9.5% increase over the previous year. Georgetown is next at $33,055, a 6.8% increase, followed by George Washington at $32,620. Fordham Law is nearly identical to BC at $31,345. Both Notre Dame and Boston University have yet to announce their tuition for the 2004-2005 academic year.

BC Law was recently named among the 10 best Law Schools for the Money list for 2004. The ranking, done by PreLaw Insider and National Jurist Magazines, put BC Law second overall, tops in the “excellent value” category. The magazines used 6 factors in calculating its “Best Value” honors, including tuition, bar pass rate, unemployment rate of graduates, the median grant as a percentage of tuition, the number of clinical slots available relative to total enrollment, and faculty/student ratio.

Dunn said that a total University budget of $576 million was approved for next year. It will include a provision for an increase in faculty salary, but the amount was not made public. "The board doesn't traditionally release those details," said Dunn. This is the 33rd consecutive year that the University has had a balanced budget.