More and more colleges are starting to employ what is called "differential tuition." That means that studying some disciplines will cost you more than others. One reason for this is to discourage too many students from a particular course of study. For example, at the University of Tennessee, the number of business students has doubled in the past few years, while the school's budget and the number of faculty has stayed the same. Still, students want a business degree because it will pay off better in the long run than a degree in philosophy. That is another reason college can charge more: because the result is worth it. But is it fair?

Universities have to pay "competitive salaries to retain" professors who are in demand elsewhere, says The Cavalier Daily of the University of Virginia. The "market value" of business, engineering, and nursing professors is higher than that of other disciplines, and it makes sense for those programs to be more expensive.

But what happens to students who can only afford a degree in a cheaper field? Should public universities set prices according to the laws of supply and demand? Or will higher tuition for, say, engineers only discourage students from becoming the workers we will need in the future? Link

(Image credit: Flickr user gadgetdude)