The state’s six public universities on Wednesday presented their tuition proposals to the Board of Regents for the 2025-26 academic year.
Most of them are seeking increases to address faculty pay, cybersecurity threats, inflation and evolving international student enrollment trends.
For resident undergraduate students, they are seeking anywhere from no increase at Emporia State to 3% at three University of Kansas campuses to 8% at the Kansas State Salina campus.
The proposed tuition increases for all students would generate an estimated $43.3 million in revenue, an increase of 5.1% from about $852 million in the current year.
Here are all of the requests submitted to the board.
Overall, the proposed increases for undergraduate resident students would be lower or the same as last year except for Kansas State, which is proposing a 3.5% increase for 2026 compared to the 2.8% for the current year.
K-State officials said their increase is driven to address “persistent compensation challenges” among faculty and staff.
They said faculty salaries currently rank ninth out of 11 peer institutions, and staff recruitment and retention remain constrained by below-market pay and inconsistent adjustments.
K-State is pursuing a “multi-pronged compensation strategy” for next fiscal year including cost-of-living and market alignment adjustments.
While the state is expected to contribute approximately $4 million toward the effort at K-State, an additional $7.7 million in university funding – largely supported by tuition revenue and enrollment increases – is necessary to implement the plan.
“These efforts are designed to stabilize the workforce, reduce turnover, and preserve strong student-faculty engagement,” the university said in its proposal.
Officials at the University of Kansas said their 3% proposed increase for undergraduate students is needed to address inflation cybersecurity threats, aging infrastructure and unprecedented changes to federal grant contracts, as well as other economic pressures.
While Wichita State is seeking a 3.5% tuition increase, the school said it is reducing its general budget by 4.8% for an overall savings of $10.6 million – $3.4 million in new tuition revenue and $7.2 million in budget reductions.
The school wants to put $1.5 million of that money into faculty and staff pay, a $5.5 million revenue decline because of changing trends in international student enrollment as well as $3.5 million for Shocker Athletics to cover the proposed NCAA class-action settlement that is nearing approval in federal court.
Fort Hays State told the board in a memo that the school is facing historically high inflation that’s affecting utilities, fringe benefits, essential software, janitorial supplies and equipment needs. The school said it’s budgeting $320,000 more to offset those increases.
The university also said it’s struggling to retain employees.
“Excellent and knowledgeable employees have left the university for better-paying jobs,” the school said in its request to the board.
The school is planning to invest an additional $1.5 million in promotion and market corrections for its employees.
The state is providing a 2.5% merit pool, which would contribute $763,000 for those pay adjustments. The school will pick up the balance to fund those raises.
Here are snapshots of the proposals to increase tuition for students each semester.
They were presented Wednesday with the Board of Regents expected to take final action next month.
University of Kansas-Lawrence
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $165
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $439.50
Proposed increase for resident, graduate: $271.20
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: $390
Proposed fee increases: $10.45 per semester for a full-time student at the Lawrence and Edwards campuses. The KU Medical Center campus is proposing no change to the required student fee. The student fee would increase by $6.05 and the wellness fee would increase by $4.40.
Efforts made to avoid tuition increase: University leadership said it is committed to minimizing the student impact of the current climate facing higher education. “The University has a history of budget reductions, discontinuance of academic programs,
and continues to focus on continuous improvement to enhance processes, improve service, and reduce costs, allowing the University to maintain low tuition rate increases at both campuses. The University has made historic strides in strategic enrollment management and increased research funding as well as other revenue growth and cost savings initiatives. While these achievements are significant, the university also faces increased costs, cybersecurity threats, aging infrastructure, unprecedented changes to the federal grant landscape, and other economic pressures at a time of investing in its employees through market wages.”
University of Kansas-Edwards
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $165
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $439.50
Proposed increase for resident, graduate: $271.20
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: $390
Proposed fee increases: See above
University of Kansas Medical Center
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $168
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $436.50
Proposed increase for resident, graduate: $164.40
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: $387.60
Proposed fee increases: None
Emporia State
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: 0
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: 0
Proposed increase for resident, graduate: 0
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: 0
Proposed fee increase for students: 0
Wichita State
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $131.76
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $312.09
Proposed increase for resident, graduate: $142.33
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: $349.55
Proposed fee increase: None
Efforts made to avoid tuition increase: “The university has implemented a variety of efforts to mitigate costs for students, while also expanding scholarship opportunities and expanding access to quality higher education. In the fiscal year 2026 budget, a total of $7.2 million in reductions and reallocations are planned to help offset increased expenses and expected reductions in tuition revenue associated largely with our international
student population. Many of these reductions will be gained through operating efficiencies, including a specific focus on course fill rates and optimized staffing models in academic affairs.”
Fort Hays State
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $94.05
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $331.05
Proposed increase for resident, graduate students: $112.44
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate students: $320.40
Proposed increase for regional, graduate students: $112.44
Proposed fee increase: None
Efforts made to avoid tuition increase: “The University has achieved its student-centered pricing structure because of innovative programs and efficient performance.
As we progress through the uncertainty of the future and the challenges facing higher education, including record inflation, declining high school senior graduates, increased competition, and wage pressures, the university has instituted several measures to keep costs down.” The university said it has an executive-level review of all hiring requests, has cut travel expenses, has reduced operating budgets and has curtailed overtime. The university said those reductions have resulted in savings of more than $6.6 million.
Kansas State University/Manhattan Campus
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $179.25
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $482.82
Proposed increase for resident, graduate students: $194.44
Proposed tuition increase for nonresident, graduate: $434.81
Proposed fee increase: None
Efforts made to avoid tuition increase: “The rate adjustments across K-State’s four campuses aims to generate approximately $8.4 million in additional revenue, which will be reinvested in key institutional priorities such as faculty and staff compensation, classroom renovations, and student success initiatives.”
Kansas State University/Salina Campus
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $379.14
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $1,021.72
Proposed increase for resident, graduate students: $286.48
Proposed tuition increase for nonresident, graduate: $553.97
Proposed fee increase: None
Kansas State/veterinary medicine
Resident: $297.99
Nonresident: $506.73
Proposed fee increase: None
Kansas State/Olathe campus
Proposed increase for undergraduate: $179.25
Proposed increase for graduate students: $194.44
Proposed fee increase: None
Pittsburg State
Proposed increase for resident, undergraduate: $78
Proposed increase for nonresident, undergraduate: $78
Proposed increase for resident, graduate students: 0
Proposed increase for nonresident, graduate: 0
Proposed fee increase: $21.50 a semester for all students. The Student Government Association and the university are proposing a 2.5% increase to campus fees for fiscal 2026. “This increase is targeted to fund inflation driven cost increases and program enhancements in three student priority areas – student center, student recreation, and student activities.” Students are seeking an expansion of student recreation services, especially club sports programs with the requested increase.
Efforts made to avoid tuition increase: The university says it has been proactive in managing expenses to align with revenue. “This includes the net reduction of 140 positions during enrollment declines over the past decade. The University has made approximately $12 million in budget reductions in recent years in order to re-allocate resources to key needs and align with available revenues.”
