DALLAS -- As college tuition has risen and financial aid has lagged, paychecks for higher-education leaders in Texas and the rest of the country have continued to grow, according to a new national survey.

The leaders of nine public universities and systems in Texas earned more than half a million dollars in 2007-08, the most recent year available, according to the survey by The Chronicle of Higher Education, released this week. And most of them received generous raises from the year before – as much as 30 percent.

Heads of private Texas colleges were well compensated, too, with four receiving more than a half-million dollars in 2006-07, also the most recent year available.

In Texas and other states, total compensation – salary plus benefits – has risen along with college costs, a fact that hasn't escaped the attention of some lawmakers, students and others.

"Whatever happened to public service? The president of the United States makes less money than the president of the University of Texas," said Zack Hall, a UT-Austin senior from Frisco who has lobbied for lower student costs.

Among the survey's findings:

•Mark Yudof, as chancellor of the University of Texas System, was the fourth-highest-paid public leader in the country in 2007-08, at $786,000. (He left in June for the University of California system.) Ohio State University paid its president the most of any public campus, over $1.3 million.

•Median pay for presidents at private research universities across the country stayed about the same, at approximately $527,000 in 2006-07. Gerald Turner at Southern Methodist University was the highest paid in Texas, at $877,000, and his pay ranked 19th nationally. The top-paid president in the country, at Boston's Suffolk University, received $2.8 million.

•Nationally, median pay at public research universities rose nearly 8 percent, to $427,400 – meaning half of colleges surveyed paid their leaders more than that, half paid less. The median pay in Texas was about $540,000.

College presidents aren't always the highest paid on campus. Top football and basketball coaches easily pull seven-figure packages, with part of the money often coming from sources like endorsements, television deals and private donations.

At UT-Austin, Will Muschamp, who was just anointed the eventual successor to football coach Mack Brown, will have his pay bumped from $425,000 to $900,000 as defensive coordinator. Mr. Brown, meanwhile, makes $3 million a year.

Pay for presidents at some public universities, including UT campuses, the University of North Texas and Texas A&M, is a mix of public sources and private ones, like donations.

State Rep. Dan Branch, R-Dallas, said six-figure packages may seem exorbitant to parents and students, but he urges them to consider what those presidents bring through fundraising and other efforts.

"At some point, if that person can deliver hundreds of millions of dollars, you might say, well that was a really good investment," he said.

But Mr. Branch, who heads a special committee on education finance, said he believes the current economy will affect future contract negotiations. "I would predict you would not see as healthy a compensation package," he said.

Many college trustees, who hire campus presidents and system heads and generally set their compensation, say the pay packages are justified.

These leaders work 70-hour weeks or more, trustees say. The best ones bring in donations that dwarf their salaries many times over. Under Dr. Turner, for instance, SMU has raised $859 million and counting in major campaigns.

"We are interested in making SMU a first-tier university, and to have a first-tier university you must have first-tier leadership," said Carl Sewell, chairman of SMU's board of trustees. Presidents like Dr. Turner, he said, "aren't free – and they shouldn't be."

Plus, trustee say, they must pay enough to attract and hold onto talented leaders.

"For the last two decades, it's been like almost an arms race. It keeps escalating and escalating, and you're scared to death if you lose somebody because of money," said Robert Estrada, a former UT System regent from Fort Worth.

Benefits reported by The Chronicle vary from school to school and may include deferred compensation, retirement pay, bonuses and house or car allowances.

For instance, Texas Tech chancellor Kent Hance's $552,000 pay included a $24,000 car allowance (he drives a 2008 Cadillac Seville, a spokesman said). UNT president Gretchen Bataille boosted her pay by almost a third in 2007-08, thanks mostly to a $98,750 bonus.

"She has made the most unbelievable difference," said Gayle Strange, chairman of UNT's board of regents. "The board decided she'd been an extreme bargain when we hired her."

Jeff Kline, UNT's student body president, doesn't have a problem with that level of pay. Dr. Bataille has traveled across the country meeting with alumni, sought more donations and raised the school's profile, he said.

Texas Tech froze tuition and fees this year at last year's level. To set an example, Mr. Hance did not ask for a pay increase – though regents boosted his salary 2 percent, a spokesman said.

The compensation figures reported in The Chronicle were set before the recent economic meltdown. Given the change in climate, Mr. Estrada said, "It's certainly not the time to be talking about raising a president's compensation at academic institutions."