Fall 2025 data shows tuition discounting rates have hit another record high.
Preliminary estimates put the average discount rate for the 2025–26 academic year at 57.1 percent for first-time, full-time undergraduates at private colleges and 51.3 percent for all undergraduates, according to the latest study conducted by the National Association of College and University Business Officers. That’s up from 54.5 percent in the 2024–25 academic year for first-time, full-time undergraduates and 50 percent for all undergraduates, based on finalized discounting data released as part of the study, which has been conducted annually since 1994.
This year’s study was completed by 258 private, nonprofit colleges. (It notes that preliminary estimates are likely to change partly because the survey is completed in the fall, before enrollment and related financial aid data are finalized in the spring.)
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