Student Expenses

Full-time tuition charges and student activity fees at North Central College cover classroom instruction for eight to twelve credit hours each term; admission to certain athletic, social and special events; and subscriptions to certain College publications. Some courses and instructional programs require additional fees, which are published in the course schedule. A schedule of charges for the 2015–16 academic year, as of the date of publication of this catalog, appears below. Other expenses beyond the basic tuition charge and student activity fees include books and supplies and room and board.

Statement of Charges: 2015–16

The normal academic course load is ten credit hours per term. Students will normally not enroll for more than 12 credit hours in any term.

To qualify for financial aid, such as Illinois State Scholarships or Grants, Pell Grants, Perkins Loans, Stafford Loans, special scholarships or other awards, a student must maintain an enrollment of not less than four credit hours. Full veteran subsistence requires a minimum enrollment of eight credit hours. This standard also applies for the purpose of establishing priority to live in residence halls. Students who enroll for less than eight credit hours will be considered part time students.

The following fee schedule is applicable to the 2015–16 academic year. The College reserves the right to change these fees at any time prior to the beginning of the academic year.

Tuition and Fees:

* Overload fee for each credit hour over 12 credit hours - $825.00

Room and Board

The College furnishes all residence halls with basic furniture, draperies, desks and mattresses. All other items, including pillows, lamps, blankets, bed linen and towels, are supplied by the student.

Campus housing charges include both room and board. All students living in College-owned residence halls are automatically covered by a 130-meal per term plan at Kaufman Dining Hall. While no reduction in charges can be made for irregular or interrupted usage of the food service, students may select alternate meal plans which provide fewer meals and snack bar money (“Bonus Bucks”) which can be used at the Cage or Rolland Center Boilerhouse Cafe when Kaufman is not available to them. Sack lunches are available for those students who are absent during the regular meal hours for practice, teaching, internships, athletic events or other activities. Students living off-campus may purchase a meal plan or purchase meals at Kaufman Dining Hall on a per-meal basis.

In cases where the student is prevented from consistent use of the dining facility due to College-sponsored internships or health restrictions, a written appeal can be submitted to the Director of Residence Life, requesting removal from the board plan. Such written requests must be submitted at least two weeks prior to the start of each term and discussed completely with the Director of Food Services and are only granted if Food Services cannot meet dietary or other restrictions.

Other Expenses

Full-time students can expect to pay an average of $1,200 for books and supplies during the academic year. The cost may be higher or lower depending upon the number and nature of the courses in which the student is enrolled.

Personal and transportation costs will vary depending upon the spending habits, place of residence and marital status of the individual student. A single student living on campus can anticipate personal expenses (clothing, entertainment, laundry, etc.) averaging $1,182, and transportation expenses averaging $447 for the academic year. Transportation expenses for a commuting student can amount to over $1,470, depending upon the distance the student travels to and from campus and the mode of transportation used.

Advance Deposits

A student who is offered admission to the College must submit a $100 nonrefundable tuition deposit to confirm his/her intention to enroll. The deposit is applied to tuition for the first term of entry.

New students planning to live in campus housing must submit a nonrefundable $100 housing deposit with a room and board contract to reserve a residence hall room. This deposit is used toward future housing reservations or as a security deposit for damages to the residence halls.

Music Instruction Fees

Charges for private lessons are not included in tuition charges. Lessons are 30 or 60 minutes in length and are not scheduled during vacation periods or D-Term. No deduction is made in case of student absences, except in cases of protracted illness. In such cases, the pro-rata loss is shared equally by the student and the College.

One-half hour lessons are given by resident music faculty as time permits. Such lessons, whether taken for credit or not, will be charged as indicated on the class schedule, which is published at the beginning of each registration period.

Payment of Tuition and Fees

The expenses, as scheduled, are due and payable on or before the beginning of each term. A late payment fee is charged after the eighth calendar day of the term. Statements are available online approximately 4-6 weeks in advance of the due date.

Payment of tuition and fees can be done online through Merlin, over the phone, in person at the Business Office or by mail. Payments online can be made by credit card-Visa, Mastercard, American Express or Discover accepted, or E-check. Payments over the phone can be made by credit card. Payments made in person at the Business office can be made using cash, credit card or check (include student ID # on the check). Payments made through the mail should be by check (send Attention: Business Office and include student ID # on the check). All tuition and fee payments made by debit/credit card will be assessed a service fee from the College credit card processor. The service fee is nonrefundable and will appear as a separate charge on the payer’s credit card statement.

The College also offers a payment program for full-time undergraduate students, through a third party, in which the annual cost of education may be spread over a 12-month period. The payment program may be arranged by completing the necessary application and contract forms, identifying educational expenses minus financial aid (if applicable) and scheduling payments over a 12-month period beginning in the month of June preceding the start of the academic year. An annual fee is assessed for this plan. Interested individuals should contact the Business Office for additional information and applications.

Students utilizing the payment program can pay by check, credit card or automatic withdrawal. Payment plan payments made by debit/credit card will be assessed a service fee. This service fee is charged by the payment plan administrator’s credit card processor.

The College reserves the right to withhold the diploma or transcripts as long as any bills owed the College remain unpaid. The College reserves the right to deny registration and housing to any student with outstanding bills from a previous term. The College will pursue any outstanding balances owed by any student and the student will be liable for any costs of collection, including reasonable attorney’s fees.

Refunds

Because North Central College contracts with faculty and staff and incurs other expenses in advance of the academic year, a refund formula has been established to reflect the equitable sharing of the loss when a student withdraws from classes. Refunds due to official withdrawal, suspension or dismissal will be made on the following basis:

Tuition - A student who officially withdraws from the College or a course(s) may receive a full or partial refund (credit) according to the following schedule computed from the first official day of the academic term, as designated by the registrar, excluding summer and D-Term (which, in general, is the first weekday of the term in which classes are held):

• During first 8 calendar days — 100 %
• 9th through 14th calendar day — 90 %
• 15th through 21st calendar day — 50 %
• After 21st calendar day — 0 %

A schedule with specific effective dates is published in advance of each term. The date of withdrawal is established by the student’s completion of all official steps in the withdrawal process and is based on the date the Registrar’s Office records the withdrawal. If a student withdraws from the College or any courses at any time without having completed the official process, no refund/credit will be made. Non-attendance in a class does not automatically withdraw the student from the course. Proper procedures must be followed to withdraw from class(es). The College reserves the right to modify the refund schedule as circumstances may dictate.

Requests for exception to North Central’s refund policy must be made in writing, using the General Petition Form available in the Office of the Registrar. Exceptions may be considered for reasons such as institutional error, fully documented medical condition, death in the immediate family or a call to military service. In all cases, a complete review of any possible means of completing the course(s), including incomplete grades, must be explored prior to submitting the petition.

Federal regulations require that North Central College have a written policy for the refund and repayment of Federal Aid (Supplemental Educational Opportunity Grant, Pell Grant, Perkins Loan, Federal Stafford Loan and Federal Parent Loan) received by students who withdraw during a term for which payment has been received. This policy is effective only for those students who completely terminate their registration (i.e., cancels his/her registration, withdraws or is dismissed) or stops attending classes before completing 60% or more of the enrollment period. The in-depth explanation of this written policy is available in the Office of Financial Aid.

Room and Board contracts are for the full academic year. If a student intends to withdraw from housing during the academic year, the student must follow the procedures outlined in the room and board contract signed at the beginning of the academic year. In all cases, the student must petition the Director of Residence Life for release. Granting of the release is not automatic and refunds (credits) will be determined in accordance with the contract. All students should read and understand the Room and Board Contract before signing.

A credit balance caused by a credit card payment may be refunded back to the credit card account. A credit balance caused by any other form of payment, tuition cancellation, etc., will be refunded in the form of a check.

A Refund Request form must be completed and signed by the student in order to obtain a refund of a credit balance. Special rules apply for credit balances caused by PLUS loan payments. A Student Accounts staff person can assist with any questions regarding these matters. Student Accounts is located on the Third Floor of Old Main directly off the elevators.