College tuition will hit record highs across the country for the 2005-2006 academic year. According to the College Board, tuition increases will range between $167 and $1,132, depending on the college. Tuition for private schools like George Washington University will reach nearly $40,000 for next year. The step cost of college can sometimes be offset by financial aid, but the easier a school makes it to get aid, the less substantial it becomes.

“It’s a lot easier to get financial aid, so that’s one reason (for the increase in tuition), said Hadley Iliff, an Early College (EC) senior. “Housing is getting a lot more expensive, and it’s getting harder to keep up with construction on campuses.”

One reason for the tuition increase in public colleges is the decrease in state funds. States cover the majority of tuition for their students, so less government funding leads to more money spend on education by the individual.

When states build up a deficit and have to cut their budget, they cut education first and cut taxes in order to support programs like social security and Medicare instead of education. Tuition must increase in order to make up for lost funds.

A second reason for tuition increases is the higher standards set for education. Better student services and instruction, smaller class sizes and more tutoring are effective but also costly.

The quality of the curriculum and faculty of a college is a factor that sways students’ decisions to attend.

In fields like business and technology, professors demanding comparatively high salaries are necessary in order to meet the highest standards of education This only adds to the financial stress on students when states pull back funding for schools.

The government regulations that colleges must abide by are a third reason for tuition increases. Some of the more costly regulations include handicapped accessibility, environmental requirements, drug checks for student aid eligibility, historical preservation and graduation and crime rate reports.

According to the College Board, however, students must always keep one thing in mind: they’re not really paying the price on the tag. Financial aid and grants allow 70 percent of undergraduate students to pay less than $10,000 a year in tuition and fees.

“What I’ve found,” said EC senior Ernie Gilbert, who plans to attend UNC Chapel Hill in the fall, “is that only about five percent of students actually pay the sticker price (for a college).”

So why all the hype about high tuition prices? Whether are eligible for financial aid or not, most students are expected to go to college these days.

In fact, the statistic of earning 70 percent more on average with a bachelor’s degree than if you just had a high school diploma may be enough to make people forget about the steep price of college.

“I think it’s worth it, especially here since Guilford provides great financial aid that helps motivate the students to do well in their academics,” said first-year Thaddeus Herz.