It was 5:30 in the morning, and I was looking for Chancellor Mark Wrighton, having heard he makes a habit of walking his dog on the South 40 before sunrise. Caressed by the humid breeze, I walked down Shepley Drive while murmuring to myself: “Could you tell me—in detail—how my tuition is spent?

[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.

[media-credit name="Photos courtesy of Washington University " align="alignleft" width="142"][/media-credit] Washington University has no plans to go need-blind in its admissions policy in the near future.

For many college students, a significant international population is taken for granted to be part of a school’s demographic makeup. Just a few years ago, however, this would not have been the case; in the past five years, the number of Chinese undergraduate students alone has risen from 10,000 to 57,000. Enrollment as a percentage has similarly skyrocketed.

Tuition for the 2012-2013 year will be $42,500—a 3.8 percent increase over tuition for the 2011-2012 year—announced Barbara Feiner, vice chancellor for finance, on Thursday. It is an increase of $1,550 from the 2011-2012 year’s tuition of $40,950.

Most people would generally agree that college tuition is expensive. We might even nod our heads to affirm that our college is more expensive than most. Even with the financial aid packages, the amount due every semester is by no means puny.

Tuition for the 2012-2013 year will be $42,500, a 3.8% increase from the 2011-2012 year, announced Barbara Feiner, vice chancellor for finance on Thursday.

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.

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.

Washington University has set undergraduate tuition for the 2011-2012 academic year at $40,950, a 3.9 percent increase from $39,400 tuition for the current academic year. Barbara Feiner, vice chancellor for finance, made the announcement in a news release on Thursday.