Whitworth slashes tuition in half - but students pay the same

Whitworth University will be slashing its advertised undergraduate tuition rates by more than half next fall.

Despite a sticker price cut of tens of thousands of dollars, the majority of students can expect to be paying the same amount – about $26,900 per year.

Whitworth President Scott McQuilkin said it’s an effort to introduce transparency and a dose of honesty about what students should expect to pay at the private college in north Spokane.

He said private colleges publicize high-tuition costs, but then offer deep discounts in the form of school-based scholarships for students that “in essence have functioned as coupons.”

For instance, an average student enrolls at Whitworth under the $54,000 price tag. Being average, they go on to receive $27,000 in “scholarships” from the school t