Previous research suggests that college and universities may use success in big-time intercollegiate athletics to increase tuition. The largest effects have been found at public institutions, especially for out-of-state tuition rates. The present study revisits those findings using a broader sample that includes private schools. Rates are more responsive to athletic success when tuition includes room, board, and fees—more so in the case of football performance than in basketball performance. When the dependent variable is exclusively tuition, there appears to be little relationship with the fortunes of sports teams. These findings point to a need for increasing student fees in order to continue participation in the so-called athletic arms race and the potential of room and board to serve as revenue streams for the host school.
AlexanderD. L., & KernW. (2009). The impact of athletic performance on tuition rates.International Journal of Sport Finance, 4, 240–254.
2.
AlexanderD. L., & KernW. (2010). Does athletic success generate legislative largess from sports-crazed representatives? The impact of athletic success on state appropriations to colleges and universities.International Journal of Sport Finance, 5, 253–267.
3.
BaadeR. A., & SundbergJ. O. (1996). Fourth down and gold to go? Assessing the link between athletics and alumni giving.Social Science Quarterly, 77, 789–803.
College Board (2012). College handbook. New York: Author.
7.
HumphreysB. R. (2006). The relationship between big-time college football and state appropriations for higher education.International Journal of Sport Finance, 1, 119–128.
8.
Knight Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics. (2009). Quantitative and qualitative research with football bowl subdivision university presidents on the costs and financing of intercollegiate athletics: Report of findings and implications. Retrieved from http://www.knightcommissionmedia.org/images/President_Survey_FINAL.pdf
9.
Macmillan USA (2012). College blue book (39th ed.). New York: Author.
10.
MangoldW. D., BeanL., & AdamsD. (2003). The impact of intercollegiate athletics on graduation rates among major NCAA Division I universities: Implications for college persistence theory and practice.Journal of Higher Education, 74, 541–562.
McEvoyC. (2005). The relationship between dramatic changes in team performance and undergraduate admissions applications.SMART Journal, 2(1), 17–24.
13.
MixonF. C., (1995). Athletics versus academics? Rejoining the evidence from SAT scores.Education Economics, 95, 277–283.
14.
MixonF. C., & ResslerR. W. (1995). An empirical note on the impact of college athletics on tuition revenues.Applied Economics Letters, 2, 383–387.
15.
MixonF. C., TreviñoL. J., & MintoT. C. (2004). Touchdowns and test scores: Exploring the relationship between athletics and academics.Applied Economics Letters, 11, 421–424.
16.
MurphyR. G., & TrandelG. A. (1994). The relation between a university's football record and the size of its applicant pool.Economics of Education Review, 13, 265–270.
PopeD. G., & PopeJ. C. (2009). The impact of college sports success on the quantity and quality of student applications.Southern Economic Journal, 75, 750–780.
19.
RoystonP. (2009). Multiple imputation of missing values: Further update of ICE, with emphasis on categorical variables.Stata Journal, 9, 466–477.
20.
SmithD. R. (2008). Big-time college basketball and the advertising effect: Does success really matter?Journal of Sports Economics, 9, 387–406.
21.
SperberM. (2001). Beer and circus: How big-time college sports is crippling undergraduate education. New York: Henry Holt and Company.
22.
StinsonJ. L., & HowardD. R. (2007). Athletic success and private giving to athletic and academic programs at NCAA institutions.Journal of Sport Management, 21, 235–264.
23.
TomaJ. D., & CrossM. E. (1998). Intercollegiate athletics and student college choice: Exploring the impact of championship seasons on undergraduate applications.Research in Higher Education, 39, 633–661.
24.
TuckerI. B. (2004). A reexamination of the effect of big-time football and basketball success on graduation rates and alumni giving rates.Economics of Education Review, 23, 655–661.
