The Utah State Board of Regents approved an average system-wide tuition increase of 3.06 percent for the 2015-16 academic year—the lowest average increase since 1999—at their meeting today at Dixie State University.

“In higher education, our first concern is the students. We want to keep tuition as low as possible, while ensuring that students receive a high-quality education,” said Dave Buhler, Utah Commissioner of Higher Education. “The Board of Regents and university and college presidents have worked hard to ensure that tuition remains affordable in Utah.”

The tuition rates at Utah’s public colleges and universities are among the lowest in the Western region. In fact, Utah has the third-lowest average tuition rates for four-year public colleges in the nation. The approved 2015-16 tuition increase is 3.0 percent at seven of the eight public institutions in the state and 3.5 percent at the University of Utah.

One of the primary roles of the Board of Regents is to set the tuition rate for all eight public colleges and universities in Utah. This low increase is in keeping with the Board’s newly-adopted strategic objectives of “Affordable Participation” and “Timely Completion,” as finances are often a reason students delay or do not complete their higher education.