Union Commonwealth University is slashing its published undergraduate tuition and comprehensive fee from $32,000 to $19,000 per academic year, a nearly 41% cut set to take effect in the 2027-28 academic year. The Barbourville school says the $13,000 reduction follows nearly a year and a half of internal analysis and was approved by its board of trustees as part of a broader strategic plan.
According to Union Commonwealth University, the tuition reset is designed to support financial sustainability, expand access, and make a private university education attainable for more students. The university says the change reflects a deliberate evaluation of its tuition and fee structure, along with how it communicates affordability to prospective families.
University President Dr. DJ Washington said published college prices can intimidate families even when scholarships and financial aid ultimately make the actual cost more affordable, per the university's announcement. Washington said the school wants students and families to consider Union at the very start of their college search, rather than ruling it out based on sticker price alone.
Why the University Says It's Making the Change Now
The university says a high published price can discourage prospective students from even exploring financial assistance before writing off the school as out of reach. Washington said families should explore Union without assuming a private university education is automatically beyond their means, the school's statement notes.
Union Commonwealth University says it already provides scholarships and financial aid that can significantly reduce students' actual expenses, and that cost of attendance at the school can be competitive with or lower than public institutions. The school says 100% of its undergraduate students currently receive scholarships or other financial aid, according to the university's tuition and fees page, though estimated costs still vary depending on factors like housing choice, food costs, and a student's specific program or school.
The university says current students will not see an increase in out-of-pocket educational expenses as a result of the reset. Financial aid and award packages will be adjusted to reflect the new tuition structure, and the school says it will provide students additional information about updated awards as implementation moves forward.
Pathway Program Students Stay on a Separate Track
Students enrolled in Union's tuition-free pathway programs will not be impacted by the reset, the university says, because those students participate in a separate tuition model altogether. Existing pathway scholarship benefits will remain in place according to each program's terms and eligibility requirements.
Union's move fits into a broader trend among colleges nationally. As Higher Ed Dive reports, a tuition reset typically involves a college slashing its published price to an amount closer to what the average student already pays, while commensurately decreasing the institutional aid it awards.
Carroll College, for instance, said it would cut its listed tuition by 40% to $26,800 for the 2027-28 academic year, according to the same report. That school also acknowledged the reduction would not necessarily mean current students pay less, noting that its average institutional aid package already took about 45% off its listed price; Carroll said it would separately eliminate its roughly $1,450 annual general student fees for undergraduates.
Other schools have made similar moves. Concordia University, St. Paul said it would cut its sticker price by about 20% to $21,700 for 2027-28, per Higher Ed Dive's reporting, while Forbes reported that the University of Tulsa was cutting its undergraduate sticker price from $54,000 to $25,000.
