Public education has been a pillar of the US, even before its founding. The Northwest Ordinance of 1787 (adopted by the Confederation Congress) encouraged schooling and the pursuit of education. In 1862, the Morill Act created a mechanism for states to establish public colleges funded by federal land grants. These public universities were intended to provide access to people who had previously been excluded from education. For more than a century, public universities offered a more affordable path to higher education. In the last 20 years, that path has grown more expensive.
This animated map explores changes in in-state tuition at public universities from 2002 to 2023. It uses inflation-adjusted data (2023 dollars) from the National Center of Education Statistics to compare real changes in tuition over time. The map includes the 199 public universities in the US with more than 10,000 undergraduate enrollees.
The map begins in 2002, with in-state tuition represented by dots. Larger, darker blue circles indicate more expensive tuition. Smaller, lighter-colored circles show schools with more affordable tuition. The six most expensive schools in a given year are flagged on the map, as well as in a chart on the bottom left of the video.
As time passes, circle sizes and colors update to reflect tuition by year. You can also see individual costs for the six most expensive universities over time. In 2002, the most expensive public school was the University of Vermont at $15,236. By 2023, Temple University took the top spot at $22,082.
Once the map reaches 2023, it swipes back to 2002 to reflect the scale of changes over 20+ years. The comparison is stark, with larger, darker blue circles replacing many of the smaller, lighter-colored ones. Among the six most expensive schools in 2002, only one (Miami University in Ohio) is absent from the list by 2023. Despite the significant changes over time, you can spot a few patterns.
While their costs have increased, colleges in Florida, North Carolina, and Utah remain relatively affordable. In California, you can see a clear differentiation between the less expensive California State University system and the more expensive University of California system. Colleges in states like Texas and Georgia show similar variability.
The video ends with a chart showing the average tuition by state over time. Most states rise to a peak around 2020 and 2021 before falling slightly. A panel on the left tracks the national average in both raw dollars and hours worked at the federal minimum wage. Average tuition rose from $6,700 in 2002 to $11,300 in 2023, a 68.8% increase. During that same period, the federal minimum wage increased only once, in July 2009.
More to Explore
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