The Most Expensive College in Every State

The average undergraduate student enrolled in Tuskegee University receiving grant or scholarship aid pays $33,420 a year for room, board, tuition, and textbooks (minus any financial aid) — more than the average student in any other college or university in Alabama. Tuskegee is a private, historically Black school and graduates more African Americans with degrees in STEM fields — science, technology, engineering, and mathematics — than any other college or university in Alabama.

Tuskegee is more selective than most schools in the state, accepting only 51.7% of nearly 11,000 applicants in 2019. Only about half a dozen other schools in the state have a lower acceptance rate.

Of the nine qualifying higher learning institutions in Alaska, Alaska Pacific University is the only one with an annual net price of more than $20,000. The school also happens to be the easiest college in the state to get into, with an 89.2% admission rate.

Alaska Pacific University is a relatively small liberal arts college located in Anchorage, with fewer than 400 active undergrad students.

The average undergraduate student receiving aid at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott Arizona pays nearly $37,000 per year, even after accounting for financial aid. The school specializes in offering education in aviation, technology, and security, and the school’s flight department boasts 45 airplanes and 18 helicopters.

Like most schools on this list, Embry-Riddle is private. Still, the average annual cost of attendance is more than $18,000 higher than the average across all private schools nationwide.

John Brown University is a small, private, Christian school located in Siloam Springs, Arkansas. Though it ranks as the most expensive college or university in the state, the average annual cost of attendance of $21,912 is not much higher than the average cost of $19,220 across all four-year private institutions nationwide.

Less selective than many other schools on this list, John Brown University granted admission to more than three-quarters of the 1,176 prospective students who applied in 2019.

The California Institute of the Arts, a private college outside of Los Angeles, is the most expensive school in California and one of the most expensive in the country. The average undergraduate student receiving financial aid pays $54,594 per year to attend — more than double the average net price of $19,220 across all private schools nationwide.

The school, co-founded by Walt Disney, offers a range of degrees in arts, including acting, character animation, creative writing, and film direction.