Emily Chan

Starting this semester, Penn State students taking more than nineteen credits saw additional charges on their tuition bill.

In their mid-summer meeting, The Board of Trustees have agreed to implement this policy. For undergraduate students attending University Park, each additional course will cost $820. For students at other commonwealth campuses, a charge of $552 to $261 will be applied. Those taking World Campus courses can expect to pay $626 per additional course. Regular undergraduate students taking twelve to nineteen credits will not be seeing an increase in their tuition. 

Students looking to enroll in more than nineteen credits will be required to have a mandatory meeting with their academic advisor and will not be able to add extra courses to their schedules until the start of classes. Students are strongly encouraged to meet with a financial advisor to explore payment options regarding this surcharge. Billing for surplus courses will be rolled out at a separate time than at the original tuition billing cycle. The decision to implement this policy was backed by a “task force” whose findings listed that other institutions have the same policy set in place. This is because, according to the newsletter, majority of students taking an excess of nineteen or more credits are pursuing certification beyond a bachelor’s degree.  This information, and more, is available via this article posted by the Office of Undergraduate Education.