Board approves 4.0 percent tuition increase

In its meeting Friday, the Board of Trustees voted to approve a 4.0 percent increase to next year's tuition rate for undergraduates.

Tuition in the 2012-2013 academic year will cost $42,308. The total cost of attendance, which includes room, board and undergraduate tuition, will increase by 3.9 percent costing $56,056 next year, according to a Duke news release Friday.

Duke expects to spend $120.5 million on undergraduate financial aid this year, which is a 10 percent increase from the amount of financial aid dollars spent in the 2010-2011 academic year. With a commitment to meeting every student's demonstrated financial need, it is possible financial aid will increase again next year, though the University will not know the total amount of aid for next year until financial aid packages for new and returning students are completed.

The Board also set tuition rates of the graduate and professional schools. The Divinity School's rate will increase by 3.9 percent at $19,120, as will the School of Medicine's rate at $48,065. Tuition at the Fuqua School of Business will increase by 5.2 percent at $52,900 for the daytime MBA. The Graduate School and the School of Law will each face a 4 percent tuition increase, at $42,350 and $50,750 respectively, according to the release.

The Board also approved the construction of the Duke Environment Hall, a 70,000-sq. foot addition to the Levine Science Research Center that will unite the faculty, classrooms and administration of the Nicholas School of the Environment with the school's current space in the "A" wing of the LSRC.

Construction of the Environment Hall is expected to begin in late April, and completion is projected for summer 2013, according to the news release. The building will cost about $35 million.