Soka University, a private liberal arts college, plans to cover full tuition for students from families earning $200,000 or less a year, more than double its previous income threshold.
Students from middle-income families who previously received partial aid now qualify to have their entire tuition covered under the expanded plan.
“Inflation has been a challenge all across our country, so we want to be able to adjust with the circumstances that American families are facing,” Edward “Ed” Feasel, president of Soka, told the Business Journal.
Baseline undergraduate tuition at Soka is currently $38,486,
Baseline undergraduate tuition at Soka is currently $38,486, a 4% increase from last year.
The rising sticker price of college has become a concern for American families, with costs increasing 46.5% faster than inflation since 2000
Expanded full coverage tuition, which will take effect in the 2027-28 academic year, was made possible through increased donor support and Soka’s sizeable endowment, Feasel said. Soka last reported its endowment to be approximately $1.6 billion.
The tuition announcement comes two months after Soka acquired Middlebury Institute of International Studies in Monterey, California, last August for an undisclosed amount.
It’s exciting that Soka now has campuses
“It’s exciting that Soka now has campuses in Southern and Northern California,” Feasel said.
Classes at the school, which will be renamed the Monterey Institute of International Studies at Soka University of America, are expected to begin in fall 2027.
Soka Extends Aid to International Students
All 480 students at Soka receive some form of financial aid, Feasel said. Every admitted undergraduate student automatically receives a merit scholarship, regardless of family income.
Soka first introduced full tuition coverage for families
Soka first introduced full tuition coverage for families earning $60,000 or less in 2008, then raised the threshold to $90,000 in 2023.
“I think it’s been us consistently trying to make education affordable, and we just want to make sure that cost is never a reason a capable student turns down a Soka education,” Feasel said.
Under the new plan, students from families earning $200,000 to $250,000 will receive half their tuition covered, while those from families earning more than $250,000 will receive 25% coverage.
Feasel said Soka’s program stands out for extending
Feasel said Soka’s program stands out for extending the benefit to international students, who make up about half of the student population.
“Our goal is to be an international university, especially given our mission to foster global citizens who lead contributive lives,” Feasel said. “Having an international community on campus is crucial to that, so I think offering financial aid definitely helps us to attract international students.”
Soka Adds 13 Grad Programs Through Middlebury Purchase
Middlebury College last year announced that it was closing the campus and discontinuing its programs due to financial difficulties.
We came in and saw these programs really
“We came in and saw these programs really fitting in with our mission of fostering global citizens,” Feasel said.
Soka is retaining 10 in-person master’s programs ranging in subjects from global policy to translation studies, as well as three online programs specializing in cybersecurity, localization project management and sustainability.
Building comparable programs from scratch could have taken decades, Feasel said.
Soka currently offers a Master of Arts in educational leadership and societal change, a two-year, full-time program designed for “educators and emerging leaders.”
While Soka does not yet have an MBA
While Soka does not yet have an MBA program, Feasel noted that the Monterey campus had one for nearly 40 years until 2019 when it phased out the program due to declining student demand nationwide.
“I wouldn’t rule it out, but certainly at this stage, we have enough to focus on,” Feasel said.
The university opened its original campus in Calabasas in 1987 and initially offered a graduate program in Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL), which has since evolved into the current master’s program.
Soka acquired 103 acres of land in Aliso Viejo in 1995 for a nonprofit, four-year liberal arts college before closing its Calabasas campus in 2007 and relocating its programs and graduate school to the new site.
Added Life Sciences Concentration Soka’s enrollment has remained
Added Life Sciences Concentration
Soka’s enrollment has remained stable as colleges nationwide face pressure to maintain student numbers.
The university has invested in its undergraduate offerings in recent years, adding a new life sciences concentration alongside a dedicated 91,000-square-foot facility in 2020.
Unlike traditional research-based science programs, Soka’s life sciences concentration combines biology, biochemistry and chemistry with humanities, international studies and ethics. Classes and lab work take place in the Marie and Pierre Curie Hall, which has five teaching labs and 14 research labs.
I think we did that at the right
“I think we did that at the right time because while maybe we haven’t seen a big boost from that, I’d hate to see what that would have looked like if we didn’t expand into the sciences,” Feasel said.
Soka offers a single undergraduate major in liberal arts with students choosing from five interdisciplinary concentrations: environmental studies, humanities, international studies, social and behavioral sciences and life sciences.
Feasel said that social and behavioral sciences tend to be Soka’s most popular concentration due to students’ interest in psychology.
“This year, there seems to be especially great concentration in the life sciences, so it can fluctuate year to year,” he said.
