Ball State freezes tuition and fees in line with state recommendation, raises room and board fees
Ball State University is freezing tuition and fees for the next two years, after a strong recommendation to do so from state officials. As IPR’s Stephanie Wiechmann reports, students will see an increase in room and board costs.
Tuition and mandatory student fees will both be frozen at the current level, which is in line with a first-of-its-kind recommendation from the Indiana Commission for Higher Education (ICHE). That’s despite state public colleges losing 5 percent in state support, and being required to hold back an additional 5 percent.
Ball State President Geoffrey Mearns said April’s dismal state revenue forecast forced many quick changes.
“And the change between what we were predicting on April 15 to what we found out by May 15 was a $20 million swing to the negative,” Mearns said.
Ball State’s state revenue cut is about $14 million per year.
“And then,” Mearns continued, “if we had simply raised tuition next year to the rate of inflation, of about 3 percent, that’s another $6 million in revenue.”
Tuition and Fees
Ball State sets tuition, student fees, and room and board every two years. In 2023, the school raised tuition by three percent. At times, Ball State has frozen tuition or frozen student fees, like in 2015, but not both in the same year recently.
Ball State officials said it’s consistently kept to ICHE recommendations or below for more than a decade. Since the 2014-2015 school year, tuition has been raised cumulatively by 18.6 percent.
Trustee chair Rick Hall said the school operates more efficiently each year.
“We’re very sensitive to what our tuition, room and board means to our families and our students here in Indiana.”
According to 2024-2025 tuition rates, Ball State has the fifth-lowest tuition cost to other state public four-year colleges. Schools with lower tuition include Purdue University, University of Southern Indiana, Indiana State University, and Indiana University-Indianapolis.
In addition to freezing tuition and mandatory fees, Ball State has committed to not raising or adding any new fees for individual programs or courses.
Full-time on-campus undergraduate students pay $2,134 in mandatory fees, listed as “student service, health, technology, and recreation” fees.
Room and Board Raises
What is increasing are room and board fees for students who live and eat on campus. Trustees passed a 2 percent increase in 2025-2026 school year and another 2 percent increase in 2026-2027.
Officials say with the most expensive room and the most expensive dining option, a student will see an about $300 increase from this year.
Looking over the last decade, Ball State number show it has raised room and board rates by 20 percent since 2014-2015.
Faculty and Staff
In line with a fiscal year 2026 general fund budget that’s nearly $8 million smaller than the previous year, faculty and staff at Ball State will see no raises. But trustees approved a one-time stipend of $1,500 for full-time employees and $750 for part-time employees. It’s to be paid in full in September, but does not add to the base salary for any employee.
Parking and car registration fees will also not be raised for staff or students.
Mearns says the university will be looking for cuts in “efficiencies” with faculty and staff over the next 6-12 months, instead of immediate layoffs or a blanket hiring freeze.
Read More: Dozens of state employees laid off as budget cuts hit agencies
The general fund budget, tuition rates, and room and board rates, and other fiscal items were approved unanimously by the Board of Trustees on Friday.
Stephanie Wiechmann is our Managing Editor and “All Things Considered” Host. Contact her at slwiechmann@bsu.edu.
