Paying for college can be daunting, and fears of tuition increases before graduation day can add to the challenge. Starting this fall, undergraduates who are NC residents qualify for the Fixed Tuition Payment bill, passed by the NC legislature in May 2016. The bill guarantees that tuition remains constant or decreases during a student’s “tuition period,” which is defined as eight consecutive academic semesters for a four-year program. Once the tuition period ends, tuition for any additional semesters reverts to the prevailing rate at the institution, plus a surcharge if applicable.
The Campus Solutions team has been hard at work to make Fixed Tuition a reality this upcoming fall. The team, led by project manager David Pass, has built a custom set of pages for the implementation, based on the design criteria agreed on with the Registrar, Cashier and Financial Aid offices. These new pages allow the Registrar’s office to track students and allow the Cashier’s office to bill students based on their Tuition Cohort. Kim Jackson, the developer on this project, has made the changes available for testing, and the business offices are testing. The projected go-live date is July 1, so that fixed tuition will be reflected in Fall 2017 billing statements.