How about this Exas, let's compare individual institutions, rather than systems. I will use UT San Antonio. UTSA has 29,000 students and an operating budget of $514 million (FY14).  This works out to $18,000 per student.  UAA and UAF put together also have about 30,000 students (let's try and eliminate economies of scale). The operating budgets of UAA and UAF are $127 million and $173 million respectively ($300 million total). This works out to $10,000 per student.  The conclusion is still the same as before: UA's institutions are operating efficiently compared to those in the L48.  When you consider the higher cost of operation in ANC/FAI vs SA and also the higher costs associated with UA's rural satellite campuses, these metrics are all the more impressive.