Indiana U.-Bloomington has the lowest average net price for in-state undergraduate students of any public Big Ten university, according to recently released information from the U.S. Department of Education.

“Average net price” is a term for the amount that in-state undergraduate students actually pay — after financial aid — for tuition, room, board and living expenses.

Though many people have not heard this term before, the U.S. Department of Education is making an effort to keep students informed of universities’ average net prices through its new College Navigator website.

In addition to having the lowest average net price, the website’s data shows that students at IU pay less than their peers at other Big Ten universities.

IU has achieved the lowest net price by holding down tuition prices and making significantly more money available for grants and scholarships to Hoosier students, said Neil Theobald, vice president and chief financial officer at IU.

IU’s average net price for 2008-09 was $10,367, almost $4,700 per year less than the average out-of-pocket cost to attend other public Big Ten universities, according to the site. This difference in price saves the average Indiana family more than $18,000 for the four years compared to residents of other Big Ten universities.

“I have no doubt we’ll be No. 1 in these rankings again next year and the year after that,” Theobald said. “No other university is working more aggressively than we are at IU Bloomington to maximize financial aid for in-state students.”

In 2008-09, the total cost of attendance at IU was calculated at $19,307, which includes tuition, room, board, books and miscellaneous expenses, and the average amount of grants awarded to in-state students was $8,940.

That left the average family paying $10,367 in out-of-pocket costs.

IU is not the only university in Indiana with a low average net price, however. Purdue’s average was reported at $10,620. The highest average price reported was Penn State at $19,056.