The numbers are getting smaller and smaller at Cabrini College and Seton Hall University – in tuition costs; that is.
The private schools are among six colleges cutting tuition in an effort to attract students from middle-income families, according to Yahoo! Finance.
The schools say lowering the cost of tuition will draw students from middle-income families with incomes too high to qualify for free federal financial aid, but not high enough to pay for college without going into deep debt.
Cabrini College is lowering tuition in the upcoming school year by nearly 13 percent, bringing the annual tuition below $30,000.
“We felt it imperative to respond to the economic environment and what we are hearing from students and their parents," said Marie Angelella George, President of Cabrini College.
The college has pledged to keep tuition and fees under $30,000 for at least three academic years. Room and board, which average $11,742 this year, are expected to increase by one percent next year.
Seton Hall University has the lowest tuition cuts for incoming freshman in the upcoming year, with new tuition costs at $10,104 – a 61 percent discount equaling nearly $21,000 in savings compared to the 2011-2012 school year.
With the new cuts, Seton Hall is now offering the same tuition costs as Rutgers University.
"A lot of families think private education is out of their reach," says Alyssa McCloud, Vice President of Enrollment Management. "We're trying to make it as affordable as public education."
Other schools cutting tuition are Lincoln College in Lincoln and Normal, Ill.; University of Charleston in Charleston, WV; William Peace University in Raleigh, NC; and Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, Pa.
