Six-year graduation rates at New Jersey s public baccalaureate institutions have improved over time and exceed national averages. Graduation rates at the four-year independent institutions also showed improvement, but the rates at the nondoctoral independent colleges lag behind their national peers. Three-year graduation rates for New Jersey community colleges are also lower than the national average. While broader measures of success for the two-year colleges are more positive, there are no national comparative data to indicate how the New Jersey community colleges stack up against their peers on such measures. While state and local government support for higher education in New Jersey remains higher than the national average, state support per FTE student declined markedly relative to the nation between 1994 and 1999.
New Jersey is near the national median in state capital funding for higher education per student.
Adequate and predictable funding for higher education is essential to ensure the quality of its colleges and universities and maintain affordability. Tuition and fees at New Jersey public institutions continue to exceed national averages. However, recent increases in state aid to the community colleges, resulting in limited tuition increases at those institutions, substantially reduced the gap between New Jersey and the nation in two-year public college tuition and fees. Increasing state operating aid to the senior public institutions and the independent institutions will help to moderate future tuition increases. In all sectors the percentage of students receiving state-funded grants and the average amount of such grants exceed national averages.