Fees and Expenses - Graduate

Tuition and Fees for Full-Time Graduate Students (2014–2015)

The fees described in the following sections are projected for the 2014–2015 academic year. Because of rising costs, the Rhode Island Board of Education reserves the right to change fees without notice as conditions necessitate.

All fulltime graduate students (those taking 9 credit hours or more per semester) and parttime graduate students (those taking fewer than 9 credit hours per semester) pay per credit hour:

All graduate students (in state and out of state) also pay once per semester:

Registration Fee: $72

Note: Graduate students enrolled in undergraduate courses pay the undergraduate tuition rate for those courses.

Students accepted into a second degree undergraduate program pay undergraduate fees. Students accepted into the RITE program also pay undergraduate fees, but only after they have been fully accepted into the RITE program. Students are responsible for informing Rhode Island College of their status in order for the proper tuition and fee charges to be assessed.

Special Fees

Students are charged the following additional fees, if applicable:

Application Fee

$50

Applied Music Fee

$650 per semester, for students taking Music 370–388 or 570–588

Laboratory/Studio Art Fee

$30 per course

Late Payment Fee

$10

School of Management Program Fee

$5 per credit hour, up to a maximum of $50 per semester

School of Nursing Program Fee

$5 per credit hour, up to a maximum of $50 per semester

Transcript Fee

$30

Explanation of Fees

The Application Fee is used to defray the costs of processing an application.

The Applied Music Fee is used to cover fourteen private fifty-minute lessons, which make up Music 370–388 and 570–588.

The Fine Arts Fee is used to provide opportunities and activities in the fine and performing arts at Rhode Island College.

The Laboratory/Studio Art Fee is used to cover the costs of art and laboratory supplies provided by the college to students enrolled in specific courses.

The Late Payment Fee is a penalty for failing to make payment during the designated periods.

The Library Fee is used to cover the costs of purchasing books, periodicals, and non-print materials for the library.

The Recreation Fee is used to cover the operation and programs of the Recreation Center.

The Registration Fee is used to cover the costs associated with the registration process.

The Technology Fee is used to cover the costs of purchasing equipment and software for student use on campus.

The Transcript Fee is a one-time fee charged to all students to cover all requests for official transcripts.

The Transportation Fee is used to fund the re-establishment of a discounted RIPTA fare program for students and parking improvements on campus.

The Tuition (General Fee) is used to cover the basic costs of educating a student and of running the college.

Determination of Residency for Tuition Purposes

The determination of residency for tuition purposes is made by the director of admissions for new students and by the director of records for enrolled students.

When residence status is in question, the student, if under eighteen, must present certification to the appropriate Rhode Island College official that the parents or legal guardians have resided in Rhode Island for at least twelve months. This certification must be verified by the clerk of the city or town in which legal residence is claimed.

If the student is over eighteen and claims independent status, a notarized statement must be furnished, indicating residence in Rhode Island for at least one year prior to the student’s first registering at Rhode Island College. In addition, to be considered independent of their parents, students must not have been claimed as a dependent for tax purposes for two years, and students must have resided in Rhode Island for at least one year. A notarized statement from the parents attesting to the fact that the student was not claimed for Internal Revenue Service (IRS) purposes for two years is required. This statement authorizes the college to verify the fact with the IRS.

For such students, time spent in Rhode Island while attending college usually may not be used to establish residence.

Contact the Records Office for further information.

Metropolitan Tuition Policy (MTP)

Rhode Island College students whose permanent place of residence is a community within a fifty-mile radius of Providence are eligible for instate tuition rates plus 50 percent. The Metropolitan Tuition Policy includes both full-time and part-time students, undergraduate and graduate students, and degree and non-degree students. Connecticut and Massachusetts communities within the fifty-mile radius are listed online at www.ric.edu/bursar/tuition_metro.php.

Forms for verification of residence for this purpose are available in the Records Office and in the RIC Course Bulletin and must be submitted for approval prior to the close of registration.

New England Regional Student Program

Rhode Island College participates in the Regional Student Program (RSP) administered by the New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE). Through this program, New England residents who live outside of Rhode Island may enroll in specified curricula at Rhode Island College for instate tuition rates plus 50 percent. The student’s program of study must be one not offered at an institution in the student’s home state, or Rhode Island College must be closer in traveling time to the student’s legal residence than an institution offering an approved RSP program in the home state.

Students must remain in the program for which they applied or may transfer only into another NEBHE program or else they will be charged outofstate tuition fees as of the date of transfer. Each semester, NEBHE program students must also request a tuition waiver from the Records Office.

Those entering Rhode Island College through the NEBHE program must meet all the standards required for admission to the college and must be accepted into a degree-granting program.

Additional information may be obtained from the vice president for academic affairs or the New England Board of Higher Education, 45 Temple Place, Boston, MA 02111.

Senior Citizen Waiver

All Rhode Island residents who are at least sixty years old are eligible to take courses at Rhode Island College without having to pay the regular tuition charges. However, the registration, recreation, and other applicable laboratory/studio fees will be charged. In addition, the student must have fulfilled all academic prerequisites for the course, the student is limited to registering on the last day of registration on a space-available basis, and is subject to a means test.

Unemployment Waiver

Rhode Island General Law 28-42-81 provides that any Rhode Island resident receiving unemployment benefits, including benefits earned in another state, is eligible for waiver of tuition for any course(s) taken at Rhode Island College. The law stipulates, however, that the waiver be granted on a space-available basis only and that each applicant be subject to a means test. Therefore, students who wish to register under the terms of waiver are limited to registering on the last day of registration. Students must obtain Form DET-467 from the Department of Employment and Training and submit this completed form, certifying eligibility, at the time of registration. Any registration prior to the specified date each term will be ineligible for consideration for an unemployment waiver and no retroactive use of the waiver is permitted. Mandatory fees that are not waived include lab fees, recreation fees, and activity fees.

Refund of Tuition and Fees

A full or part-time student withdrawing from Rhode Island College, either voluntarily or because of dismissal for disciplinary reasons, will receive a refund of tuition and/or fees in accordance with the college policy in force for first-time students, including Title IV students and all other withdrawn students. Enrolled students are also subject to the college refund policy.

Refunds for Students Involuntarily Called to Military Service

The Rhode Island Board of Education has adopted as policy the following options for students who are involuntarily called to military service:

1. Total refund of tuition and courserelated fees, including registration fee. Prorated refund for housing and dining fees. Or
2. No tuition refund but a grade of Incomplete awarded for courses in which the student is enrolled at the time of recall. Prorated refund for housing and dining fees.

Indebtedness to the College

Failure to make full payment of tuition and fees or to resolve other debts to Rhode Island College—for example, unreturned athletic equipment, overdue short-term or emergency loans, delinquent or defaulted student loans (Federal Nursing and/or Federal Perkins Loans), unreturned library books, damage to college property, etc.—may result in the cancellation of registration for the following semester, withholding of academic grades, denial of registration until the payment is made, and/or disenrollment. If requested, appropriate departments will provide the student with notice of the debt, the reason for the debt, and a review. Students must fulfill all financial obligations to the college, including participation in loan exit counseling for borrowers under one or more of the several long-term loan programs in which the college participates (e.g., Federal Perkins Loans, Federal Direct Loans, PLUS and/or SLS loans), before receiving grades, a degree, transcripts, or a diploma.