THE HIGHER COST OF HIGHER ED.(Main)

An elite group in higher education just got a bit more crowded: the $50,000 club.

Despite a deep recession, there are now 58 private colleges and universities nationally with a tuition, fees, room and board bill that tops $50,000, up from just five last year, according to a new Chronicle of Higher Education analysis.

Three of those are in the Capital Region. Skidmore College ($51,196), Union College ($50,439) and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute ($50,310) all surpassed the benchmark in the 2009-10 school year, according to the report. Another 12 schools on the $50,000 list are in New York state, with Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville topping the list at $55,788.

"The sticker shock is a scary thing," said …