For the second year in a row, it appears Penn State tuition is about to go up.

The Board of Trustees Committee on Finance, Business, and Capital Planning recommended increasing 2022-23 tuition and employee salaries, after a meeting Thursday morning. A vote featuring the whole board will commence Friday afternoon.

“Our commitment to our students is our highest priority,” Penn State President Neeli Bendapudi said in a release. “We understand the impact of a tuition increase on our students and families, and we do not take the decision to raise tuition lightly.”

Under the recommended plan, Pennsylvania resident undergraduate students would see a tuition increase of 5% at the University Park campus. In-state students at commonwealth campuses would see an increase of 2%.

Non-resident undergraduate students at University Park would see their tuition increase by 6%, while out-of-staters at commonwealth campuses would see a 3% increase.

All graduate and professional students’ tuition would increase by 6%, regardless of campus or residency status. All World Campus undergraduates would have their tuition increased by 5%.

Importantly, no in-state or out-of-state undergraduate students with household incomes of $75,000 or less would see a tuition increase this year, under the recommended plan.

The university’s proposed budget would allocate an additional $14 million to offset the tuition increase for students below the aforementioned $75,000 household income floor. This would bring the full financial aid allocation in the budget to $36 million.

The university noted that only students who complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) form for the upcoming academic year would be eligible to access Penn State’s budget for financial relief. In Penn State’s release, students were “strongly encouraged” to fill out this year’s form.

“Unfortunately, the circumstances of our current budget made these increases necessary in order to maintain the highest-quality educational experiences for our students,” Bendapudi said. “We have worked to alleviate the effects as much as possible by providing additional aid to support students from lower and middle-income families.”

Penn State cited inflation, COVID-19-related revenue and enrollment struggles, and the university’s third consecutive year of stagnant funding as reasons for the tuition increases.

A full breakdown visualizing the specific impacts of each percentage increase can be seen below:

According to the university, inflation is also the main driving force behind proposed increases in employee compensation. The board proposed a 2.5% salary increase for most Penn State employees. In its proposal, the board also allocated additional funds to cover internal academic promotions.

Upon approval, the salary increases would be instituted retroactively to July 1, and starting in August 2022, employees would see the difference in paychecks.

“We are so thankful for the hard work and dedication of our employees, as everything we do as a University relies on their skills and expertise,” said Bendapudi. “It is imperative that Penn State remains financially competitive for top talent, both in terms of retaining our current employees and attracting new ones. Even with the budget constraints we are facing, we want to support our employees by providing a salary increase for the greatest number of employees as resources would allow.”

While most employees would see an increase in salary, self-supporting units like the athletics department and the College of Medicine are not covered in the proposal. Departments of this kind would fund their own salary increases.