The Athens State University Board of Trustees approved a new, restructured tuition and fee schedule for the 2021-22 academic year at their meeting on Friday. The new schedule will now provide a single-rate structure for both traditional (on-campus) and non-traditional (online and blended) learning. According to Dr. Philip Way, President of Athens State, “The aligned tuition rates will allow students to choose the learning modality that best suits their needs in these ever-changing times at a very competitive rate.”
The new tuition rate will be $225 per undergraduate credit hour (in-state) for both traditional and non-traditional courses and $325 per graduate credit hour for both traditional on-campus classes as well as non-traditional online and blended courses. Additionally, the Board approved an increase in the technology fee assessed per credit hour and a new student activities fee of $1 per credit hour.
Tuition and fee rates per credit hour for the 2021-22 academic year will be as follows:
Undergraduate Traditional (On-Campus): $225 per credit hour
Undergraduate Non-Traditional (Distance): $225 per credit hour
Graduate: $325 per credit hour
Technology Fee: $75 per credit hour
Student Activities Fee: $1 per credit hour
Bond Surety Fee: $1 per credit hour
A majority of Athens State students have relied on non-traditional class formats in the midst of the pandemic, with 96% of students taking at least one distance course and 82% taking all distance courses as of the Fall 2020 semester. The effective rate for these online students is a 1.4% increase, which corresponds with the Consumer Price Index for 2020 – a standard by which the University considers tuition rate fluctuations from one year to the next.
Athens State remains the lowest cost of tuition of all public, state institutions in Alabama, making a quality education an attainable goal for all learners. The Board of Trustees will approve the University budget for the 2021-22 fiscal year at its meeting on July 16.