Question about Hogwarts' tuition

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 90591

"Patty Satjapot" wrote:
> Hi everyone, sorry if this was discussed before.   I was reading
through the
> series, and I realized that I have never come across anywhere in the
book
> where they mention tuition for Hogwarts and if some students were
waived or
> how much the MoM funded Hogwarts and who were their sponsors, etc. 
I was
> wondering if anyone might have read somewhere in the books if they
mentioned
> those things because I remember that Hagrid spoke to Harry in the
first book
> about his gold in Gringotts for purchasing his equipment, but he
didn't say
> anything about paying tuition.  If it's not mentioned in the books,
did JKR
> mention it anywhere?

I don't recall any mention of tuition in the books. The Weasleys can
barely afford to buy books and school supplies; IMO tuition for eight
children (or for the six who were born fairly close together) would be
impossible.

But Hogwarts wouldn't require much money for its upkeep. Repairs can
be performed magically, the House Elves work for nothing, there are no
utility bills to pay, and the teachers' salaries are presumably modest
(they receive room and board and Snape, McGonagall, et al. have enough
money to buy dress robes, but they wouldn't have many other expenses.
I'm guessing that the teachers provide the supplies they need for
their classrooms (grindylows or potion ingredients or whatever) out of
their own pockets (though Trelawney's crystal balls may have been
around since the school was built). Maybe the Ministry of Magic
provides just enough money to keep the school going--a scary thought
as that might seem to justify more Umbridge-style intervention. I
doubt that Dumbledore does. But someone has to pay for the food that
the House Elves prepare--food conjured out of nothing returns to
nothing, like leprechaun gold. Maybe the students whose parents can
afford it (or are willing to pay it?) are charged tuition, but then
the Weasleys would never hear the end of it from Malfoy.

Sorry to go around in circles here, but I don't see a clearcut answer.

Carol