UCLA Tuition 2005-2006
UC systemwide tuition for California residents was $6,141 for the 2005-2006 academic year. Non-residents paid $23,961 including Nonresident Supplemental Tuition. Campus-based fees averaged $661 across UC.
Resident Tuition
$6,141
Non-Resident Tuition
$23,961
Campus Fees (UC average)
$661
Year-over-year change: Resident tuition changed by +8%. Non-resident tuition changed by +5.83%.
What changed in 2005-2006
The Compact's first year: an 8% increase
This was the first year the Higher Education Compact governed fees, and it worked roughly as advertised. The Regents set 2005-06 fees a full year ahead, at their November 2004 meeting held at Covel Commons on the UCLA campus, approving increases consistent with the Compact provision that undergraduate fees rise 8 percent and graduate fees 10 percent.
For resident undergraduates that meant $435 more in the Educational Fee and $22 more in the Registration Fee — the first Registration Fee increase in this period, from $713 to $735. Total systemwide resident undergraduate fees rose from $5,684 to $6,141. Twenty-five percent of the new undergraduate fee revenue was set aside for financial aid. The Board approved the package 13-1, with one abstention; the student regent dissented, objecting that only 25 percent of new revenue went to aid rather than the 33 percent students had lobbied for.
The practical benefit students got from the Compact was predictability: for the first time in years, families could see the next year's number well in advance.
2005-2006 tuition in 2025 dollars
Comparing tuition across decades only works once inflation is stripped out. Adjusted with the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Consumer Price Index, the $6,141 a California resident paid in 2005-2006 is equivalent to $10,123 in 2025 dollars. Non-resident tuition of $23,961 works out to $39,499 in 2025 dollars.
Resident tuition in 2025 dollars
$10,123
Non-resident tuition in 2025 dollars
$39,499
Inflation adjustment uses CPI-U annual average, U.S. city average, all items (1982-84=100). The 2025 annual average is computed from eleven months because the October 2025 index was never collected during the federal funding lapse.
What does that mean? UCLA tuition worked out to roughly $23/day of instruction, or $409/class (assuming 15 classes per year).
At California's $6.75/hr minimum wage back then, covering tuition alone would take 910 hours of work (~23 full-time weeks) — before housing and food.
Quick Facts
Resident Tuition
vs. 5 years earlier (2000-2001)
+$2,712
Resident tuition rose 79.09% from $3,429 to $6,141
Non-Resident Tuition
vs. 5 years earlier (2000-2001)
+$9,918
Non-resident tuition rose 70.63% from $14,043 to $23,961
Looking for Current UCLA Costs?
UCLA tuition for 2026-2027 is now $16,430 for California residents. Use our interactive Cost Calculator to estimate your total cost of attendance — including housing, meal plans, books, and more.
Sources
Figures and historical context for 2005-2006 are drawn from the following sources.
- Regents Board minutes, Nov. 18, 2004 (13-1 vote, fee table)(opens in a new tab)
- Regents Committee on Finance minutes, Nov. 17, 2004 (8%, at Covel Commons)(opens in a new tab)
- LAO handout on the Higher Education Compact (June 1, 2004)(opens in a new tab)
- Daily Bruin: Regents approve fee increases (Nov. 18, 2004)(opens in a new tab)
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, CPI-U annual averages (CUUR0000SA0)(opens in a new tab)
- California Department of Industrial Relations, History of California Minimum Wage(opens in a new tab)