The Cost of Your Education

Average Annual Cost of Education and Sources of Funds Per Full-Time Equivalent Student

The 23 campuses and the Chancellor’s Office of the California State University are financed primarily through funding provided by the taxpayers of California. The systemwide cost of education is defined as total support expenditures (State University Fee revenue and General Fund support appropriations) divided by the number of full-time equivalent students. The total 2001/02 state General Fund appropriation to the CSU (not including capital outlay funding in the amount of (check w/CPD&C) is $2,607,425,000 and campus budgeted State University Fee Revenue is $509,417,000 for a total of $3,116,842,000.  The $3,116,842,000 total cost of education for CSU must provide support for a projected 305,854 full-time equivalent students (FTES). The number of full-time equivalent students is determined by dividing the total academic student load by 15 units per term (the figure used here to define a full-time student’s academic load).

The 2001/02 systemwide cost of education per full-time equivalent student is $10,191. Of this amount, the average student fee support per FTE is $1,876.  (The State University Fee and campus fees that must be paid to apply to, enroll in, or attend the university are included in the average costs paid by the students. Individual students may pay less or more than $1,876, depending on the campus and whether student is attending part-time/full-time, or is resident/nonresident student.  Also, other campus fees may be charged that are not required of all enrolled students, which include user and penalty/deposit fee types).

Projected Enrollment: 279,403 FTES