The New York Timesis reporting that a number of universities have recently increased their tuition because having lower tuition was actually turning off applicants.

Yes, you read that right.

I got curious and did a little checking as to what the going rate (tuition +room & board) was for an undergraduate year at some of the well-known Catholic colleges and universities in the United States. Here is what I found:

Villanova $45,715

Fordham $45,520

Boston College $44,600

Notre Dame $44,390

St. Marys (CA) $43,281

Loyola (MD) $41,825

Santa Clara $41,685

Loyola-Marymount $39,152

Loyola (IL) $33,696

Creighton $32,968

Now its true that a lot of schools are offering financial aid to an increasing percentage of families, so who knows what these rates really mean. But as the parent of two children (8 and 6) who would be interested in offering them higher education at a Catholic institution, these numbers are pretty terrifying. By the time my kids are in college, four years at a Catholic college is going to cost more than I paid for my house.

In one of their statements adopted a few weeks ago, the bishops talked about encouraging Catholics to have larger families. All I can say is good luck!