Tuition to rise for MUSC students

Tuition at the Medical University of South Carolina's six colleges will increase between 5 percent and 10 percent next year, said provost John Raymond.

The university's Board of Trustees approved the tuition increases earlier this spring, and it reviewed increases in student fees for next year at a meeting last week.

Students in academic programs for medical professionals often have to pay between several hundred to several thousand dollars in supplemental fees for things such as lab costs, instruments and equipment. Fees for the 2010-11 school year are up about 10 percent in all colleges, Raymond said.

In-state tuition for two semesters in the six colleges ranges from $12,852 for students in the graduate studies program to $38,906 for third-year medical students. Tuition and fee schedules for all colleges are available on the university's website.

Raymond said the university kept tuition increases as low as possible but that in the wake of state budget cuts, rates had to rise.

Students in medical professional programs are, on average, expensive to educate, he said. They require smaller classes, more supervision and more equipment than students in traditional graduate programs.

Reach Diane Knich at 937-5491 or dknich@postandcourier.com.