When it comes to Washington state’s two biggest universities, getting an education in Pullman costs $5,000 more per year than it does in Seattle.

The difference in attendance costs was brought to the attention of Washington State University’s Board of Regents last Thursday.

The University of Washington’s Seattle campus costs on average about $12,000 to attend yearly, while WSU’s Pullman campus costs about $17,000 to attend outside of financial aid assistance, stated Erica Austin, a provost at WSU, during the board meeting.

Part of the reason behind lower costs at the UW is that fewer students live on campus and instead commute to the university, the board was told. Many students live at home and therefore avoid housing costs.

The university needs to spend time addressing the issue, the board said. Its members will work on finding a solution in the future, after they tackle current focuses such as various methods of obtaining higher education – which includes online classes – and further availability of private scholarships.

Reporting by Lance Lijewski