After ranking No. 7 on the Princeton Review’s list of “Best Value Private Colleges and Universities” in 2012, Washington University dropped out of the top 10 in the 2013 edition. The Princeton Review factors in academic quality, financial aid accessibility and “Tuition GPA,” or the real cost of college.

[media-credit id=3223 align="alignleft" width="300"][/media-credit] The base price of a Washington University education has risen more than 50 percent in the last 10 years and will likely continue to rise at a similar pace, University administrators say.

Chancellor Mark S. Wrighton responded to widespread unease over the rising cost of a Washington University education by assuring students that he is committed to keeping tuition hikes reasonable while maintaining high educational quality.

Despite a national trend of universities discontinuing funding for national merit scholarships, Washington University continues to fund students named with the distinction. New York University’s recent decision to stop funding the National Merit Scholarship Program (NMSP) has incited a host of discussions amongst universities over whether it is practical to offer scholarships based on standardized test scores.

Although the U.S. Senate passed a resolution that will maintain Pell Grant funding for the 2011-2012 academic year, universities nationwide continue to be uneasy over the potential for future cuts to the program.

Starting in fall 2011, being a Residential Advisor (RA) will no longer jeopardize a student’s eligibility to receive financial aid. In an email to all RAs for the 2011-2012 school year, Associate Director of Residential Life Mary Elliott announced that the RAs will now be considered full employees of the Office of Residential Life.

Washington University received another commendation from a national review that accessed overall college experience. The Princeton Review awarded the University with a “best value distinction,” a title given to 50 private and 50 public universities based on 30 components categorized within three principal classifications: academics, cost of attendance, and financial aid factors.

The Obama administration proposed a budget plan that includes cuts of about $20 million from Pell grant federal funding.

Gov. Jay Nixon announced that the Missouri Department of Higher Education will increase scholarship amounts for students under the Access Missouri program for a combined total of about $58.7 million.

The tuition crisis is worsening as the fees for attending both public and private institutions continue to rise at a pace far exceeding the rate of inflation.