[Updated: Mon., Nov. 24, 2025, 10am]
Despite student outcry over college affordability, the University of California Board of Regents voted 13-3 on Wednesday to renew its “Tuition Stability Plan” — a pricing model that allows tuition to increase up to 5 percent per year for new undergraduates, whose rates would be written in stone from the year they enrolled for up to six years.
On Wednesday, UC Santa Barbara students called out the University of California for being “greedy,” chanting “UC, UC, you can’t hide, we can see your greedy side.” Despite their frustration, the renewed Tuition Stability Plan will take effect starting in the 2026–27 academic year.
The regents’ vote extends a program first adopted in 2021 and implemented in 2022. Though UC leaders insist it brings predictability and financial aid gains, students and some boardmembers worry it escalates economic barriers and pushes more costs onto those least able to pay.
The plan applies only to new undergraduate cohorts. Current undergrads will see no tuition changes. But incoming classes will face higher baseline tuition rates tied to inflation, and that figure will grow year over year — each new class paying more than the last.
The updated model also reduces the share of new tuition revenue directed to financial aid from 45 percent to 40 percent. UC officials say the decrease will still allow for robust student support, and they emphasize that low- and middle-income students will benefit.
A spokesperson for the UC Office of the President told the Independent that the plan “has increased financial aid that helps students pay for living expenses, books and supplies, and other college costs,” adding that it “remains flat for student cohorts for up to six years” and allows families to plan ahead. “Students from families earning under $120,000 annually have a lower average net cost of attendance than without the plan.”
UC officials gave specific projections: a student from a family earning $45,000 a year would face an average cost of $12,410 annually under the plan, compared to $14,000 without it. That’s a $1,590 difference. Students from families earning $90,000-$120,000 would see a $400 average savings. Only those from families earning more than $180,000 are expected to pay more — $41,400 compared to $40,700 annually.
UC Santa Barbara also defended the plan. Interim Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs Mike Miller said that access and affordability remain “core values” of the UC system. He noted that more than half of UC students pay no tuition due to a mix of state and institutional aid. “Only 37 percent of California students graduated with any student loan debt in 2024 and the average loan was $17,000, far less than the national average,” he said.
Miller added that the goal is for each student to be “able to afford to attend and graduate.” This goal is attempted through “a partnership between federal aid programs, state support, programs like the tuition stability program, generous and loyal donors, and finally, family resources.”
The vote follows months of financial strain within the UC system. In the past year, the university has faced a $130 million cut in state funding, nearly 800 layoffs systemwide, and the continued freeze or loss of hundreds of millions in federal research grants. UC leadership argues that modest tuition increases are one of few tools left to stabilize long-term funding.
UC Student Regent Sonya Brooks voted against the plan, urging the board to weigh student wellness, housing insecurity, and campus resource gaps before raising costs further. Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, also a voting regent, said she was troubled by the lack of annual review and the long-term implications for struggling students. For more context, 35 percent of UC in-state undergraduates take out loans to attend UC; with the average debt sitting around $17,000.
Going back into the history of “tuition” within the UC system, the evolution is drastic. In 1959, the UC Regents and the State Board of Education voted unanimously to “reaffirm the long established principle that state colleges and the University of California shall be tuition free to all residents of the state.” Governor Ronald Reagan tried to change that in 1968, pushing to impose tuition, but was blocked by the legislature. Eventually, in 1977, the UC started charging undergrads for schooling. The amount? $657 (about $2,641 in today’s dollars). Since then, the UC’s approach to tuition has evolved.
Editor’s Note: This story was updated to add UCSB’s statement on the plan.
