UCLA Tuition 2009-2010
UC systemwide tuition for California residents was $8,958 for the 2009-2010 academic year. Non-residents paid $31,723 including Nonresident Supplemental Tuition. Campus-based fees averaged $938 across UC.
Resident Tuition
$8,958
Non-Resident Tuition
$31,723
Campus Fees (UC average)
$938
Year-over-year change: Resident tuition changed by +25.7%. Non-resident tuition changed by +14.38%.
What changed in 2009-2010
Two fee votes, furloughs, and a mid-year hike
Fees rose twice in one academic year. On May 7, 2009 the Regents approved a 10 percent Educational Fee increase and a 4.2 percent Registration Fee increase effective summer 2009 — about 9.3 percent combined. The July 2009 state budget then cut far deeper, and the Regents imposed a salary reduction and furlough plan running September 2009 through August 2010: employees took 10 to 26 furlough days a year with pay cuts of 4 to 10 percent.
Then, on November 18-19, 2009, meeting at UCLA's Covel Commons, the Regents approved a mid-year increase of 15 percent effective winter quarter 2010 — $585 more for resident undergraduates. Only that step fell inside 2009-10. UC reports the year's annualized systemwide charge as $8,958, up 25.7 percent.
Thousands protested outside Covel Commons, 14 people were arrested, and students occupied Campbell Hall. The widely quoted "32 percent" figure is the compounded effect of both steps measured from fall 2009 to fall 2010 — not a single increase, and not one that landed entirely in this year.
2009-2010 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 $8,958 a California resident paid in 2009-2010 is equivalent to $13,443 in 2025 dollars. Non-resident tuition of $31,723 works out to $47,605 in 2025 dollars.
Resident tuition in 2025 dollars
$13,443
Non-resident tuition in 2025 dollars
$47,605
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 $33/day of instruction, or $597/class (assuming 15 classes per year).
At California's $8.00/hr minimum wage back then, covering tuition alone would take 1,120 hours of work (~28 full-time weeks) — before housing and food.
Quick Facts
Resident Tuition
vs. 5 years earlier (2004-2005)
+$3,274
Resident tuition rose 57.6% from $5,684 to $8,958
vs. 10 years earlier (1999-2000)
+$5,529
Resident tuition rose 161.24% from $3,429 to $8,958
Non-Resident Tuition
vs. 5 years earlier (2004-2005)
+$9,083
Non-resident tuition rose 40.12% from $22,640 to $31,723
vs. 10 years earlier (1999-2000)
+$18,120
Non-resident tuition rose 133.21% from $13,603 to $31,723
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 2009-2010 are drawn from the following sources.
- Regents item F1, Nov. 18, 2009 (mid-year and 2010-11 fee increases)(opens in a new tab)
- Regents Board minutes, Nov. 19, 2009(opens in a new tab)
- Daily Bruin: UC Regents pass 32 percent student fee increase (Nov. 19, 2009)(opens in a new tab)
- Daily Bruin: Protest of fee increase gets raucous at UCLA (Nov. 18, 2009)(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)