Paying tuition can be one of the more painful parts of attending college. Glancing at the receipt, students may not understand how the total was calculated and what the money from miscellaneous fees pays include.
“The Legislature establishes what we can charge, but the board approves any changes to the tuition and fee schedule. We have one of the lowest tuition and fee schedules in the area,” said Carol Hutson, controller of business services.
The largest chunk of money spent in attending TJC is tuition. The base tuition that every student pays is $20 per credit hour. This all that “in district” students pay. Students who are “out of district” pay the base tuition plus an additional $32 per credit hour, or $52 total. Out of state students pay the base tuition plus $48 per credit hour, or $68 total.
In addition to tuition, all students pay a general education fee. This fee is $26 per credit hour. They also pay a student life fee, which costs $2 per hour but maxes out at $26. This is the first semester that the student life fee has been implemented. It is designed to help student enrichment.
There is also a 27-hour rule fee. This fee has to do with developmental classes. A student can take 27 hours of developmental classes or college prep classes without being charged, but once the student hits the 28th hour, TJC will charge an additional $75 per credit hour.
Then there is the non-funded course fee. This fee is applied after a student has attempted to take a class twice. On the third try, the student will be charged an additional $75 per hour for the class. In a three credit hour class (a math class for example) that adds up to $225. The reasoning behind this is that TJC is a state-funded school. The state will not pay for a student to take a class more than twice. To compensate for this, TJC charges more for the class.
Not all of the fees paid to TJC are based on the number of hours the student is taking. Students also pay flat fees. These are universal fees paid by all students at TJC.
There is a registration fee of $25. In the event of late registration the fee increases to $30. There is a parking fee of $25.
There is also a health fee of $30 for the use of the health clinic located in the Rodgers Student Center. This pays for all of the services that the clinic offers. Students do not have to pay for the services of the doctor or the nurses on staff, but this fee does not cover any prescriptions that the clinic may prescribe.
There are two flat fees associated with select classes. One of these is a lab fee of $25 per course. Any science that has a lab attached with it also comes with a lab fee.
There is also a college preparatory class fee of $20 per hour of developmental classes.
As expensive as this sounds, the University of Texas at Tyler is more expensive. Their tuition starts with a $50 per semester hour for Texas residents and $350 for non-Texas residents.
“Overall TJC’s quality of instruction for what you pay is an extraordinary deal. It’s an affordable way to begin a college experience with a solid base of core classes,” said Hutson
