Wednesday, April 18, 2012KENT, Ohio -- Kent State University will begin charging students more for enrolled hours above the full-time tuition range. All students, Ohio residents and out-of-state, will be charged $440 per credit hour beyond the full-time hours range.
The university is implementing a two-step change in the tuition plateau to 11 to 17 credit hours for 2012-2013 and 11 to 16 credit hours beginning 2013-2014. The $440 fee is equal to the regular per-credit rate for tuition and general fees for students taking fewer than 11 credits.
In the first year, there will be no impact on 87% of Kent State students, as only 12.6% of students are enrolled in 18 or more credits in the fall 2011 semester. The average credit-hour load for all students is 13.5, according to university trustees. To achieve on-time graduation, most majors require a minimum of 121 hours, or 15 or 16 hours per semester.
The university’s tuition and fees rank 7th among Ohio’s public universities, meaning that six institutions have higher tuition. Even with the new plateau for next year and the tuition increase, trustees estimate that for students taking 18 to 20 hours, Kent State’s tuition and fees will still rank about 5th among the universities.
Currently, only Miami, Ohio State and Kent State do not charge a course overload fee, trustees said, and both Miami and Ohio State charge more for tuition and fees. For the current year, four institutions use a plateau of 12 to 16 credits: Cleveland State, Akron, Toledo and Youngstown State. Five institutions set their flat rate for 12 to 18 credits: Bowling Green, Central State, Cincinnati, Shawnee State and Wright State.
Only Kent State and Ohio University count 11 credits as full-time for tuition purposes. In effect, this means that every student at Kent State receives two credits a year for free compared to peers across the state and nation.
The minimum number of credit hours required for graduation is 121, so students who take 15 to 16 credits per semester will be able to graduate in four years in most majors without feeling an impact from this change, trustees emphasized.
Published by The Business Journal, Youngstown, Ohio