N.H. ranked last in higher education funding, per new report

CONCORD, N.H. — New Hampshire ranked last in the nation for the state’s contribution to higher education, according to a new report the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute released Thursday.

In fiscal year 2024, the state appropriated $4,629 per full-time student, the lowest in the nation that year and less than half the national average of $11,683, the report found.

That’s in keeping with a broader trend. “New Hampshire consistently trails all other US states in public higher education funding,” according to the report. It has come in last for state funding to higher education since at least 2019, according to Nicole Heller, author of the study and a senior policy analyst at the New Hampshire Fiscal Policy Institute.

Low levels of state funding can drive tuition and fees paid by students and families even higher. And the report warned that “underinvestment” in higher education could contribute to workforce shortages in the coming years.

Four-year public colleges in New Hampshire have bumped up tuition between 2.5 percent to 4.9 percent, while community colleges have seen a nearly 7 percent increase for the 2025-2026 school year, the report found.

At the University of New Hampshire in Durham, tuition and fees for this school year for an in-state student are $19,682. Including room and board bumps the total up to $34,386 per year. For an out-of-state student, tuition, fees, and room and board now total $55,548.

“Our findings should serve as a wake-up call,” Heller said.

“Underfunding our public colleges and universities not only makes it harder for Granite Staters to afford to pursue college degrees, it also risks leaving the state unprepared to meet its workforce needs,” she said.

The report found that the gap between New Hampshire and other states could widen in coming years, given the last state budget, which allocated 17.6 percent less to the University System than it previously received.

For the University System of New Hampshire, which includes two universities and one college, that amounted to $35 million less compared with the last two-year budget period.

After New Hampshire, Vermont’s contribution to higher education is the second-lowest in the nation, followed by Arizona, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.

Illinois is the state that contributed the most to higher education in 2024, at $25,529 per full-time equivalent student. Connecticut ranked fifth-highest at about $16,800, and Massachusetts ranked ninth at about $14,400, according to the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association.

Here’s how the New England states compare in funding per full-time equivalent student:

• New Hampshire: $4,629
• Vermont: $5,300
• Rhode Island: $7,800
• Maine: $9,500
• Massachusetts: $14,400
• Connecticut: $16,800

This story appeared in Globe NH | Morning Report, a free newsletter focused on New Hampshire, including great coverage from the Boston Globe and links to interesting articles elsewhere. To receive it via email Monday through Friday, sign up here.

Amanda Gokee can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her @amanda_gokee.