CLARIFICATION APPENDED

The cost of living at and attending Harvard College will rise by 4.5 percent this year, but an increase in financial aid is expected to outpace the hike, University officials said yesterday.

Tuition itself will rise by 3.9 percent, bringing the total cost for students, including room, board, and student fees, from $43,655 to $45,620.

This year’s increase is in line with the trend of the last decade. Total costs have increased by an average of 4.5 percent since 1997.

The cost of attending Harvard will actually decrease for some students, thanks to a spike of 6.8 percent in need-based financial aid, according to financial aid director Sally C. Donahue.

“I think we are in a really fortunate position,” she said in an interview.

Tuition has increased at an average rate of 5.3 percent over the last ten years, and the College saw an increase of 4.75 percent last year. In 1997, one year’s tuition was $20,600, while in 2007, tuition will total $31,456.

The rate at which Harvard’s tuition is rising is comparable to that of its peer colleges. Stanford trustees announced that tuition will increase by 5.46 percent next year.

Princeton’s tuition will not increase next year, but the cost of room and board will rise by more than 19 percent, generating an overall hike in costs of 4.2 percent, according to The Daily Princetonian. Yale has not yet released its tuition figures for the 2007-2008 school year.

Interim Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Jeremy R. Knowles said the increase reflected a “commitment to welcoming the most talent group of students to Harvard College.” [SEE CLARIFICATION BELOW]

“The priority at Harvard is that all qualified students can attend the College, unconstrained by their family’s financial circumstances,” Knowles said in a statement.

CLARIFICATION: Due to an editing error, the March 22 news brief "Tuition and Expenses To Rise 4.5% Next Year, But Will Be Offset by Financial Aid Growth, Officials Say" did not fully contextualize a quote by Interim Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Jeremy R. Knowles. Knowles was referring to a 6.8 percent increase in need-based financial aid when he said it reflected a “commitment to welcoming the most talent group of students to Harvard College.”