3332-1-10 Tuition and fees.

 

3332-1-10                    Tuition and fees.

 

 

 

(A)  Tuition

 

(1)   Each school must establish a total tuition charge for each program of instruction and the tuition charge must be applied uniformly to all students. This requirement does not apply to group tuition rates to business firms, industry, or governmental agencies that are documented by written agreements between the school and the respective organization. All possible tuition or fee increase policies that may affect a student before their expected graduation date must be set forth in the student's enrollment agreement.

 

(2)   The tuition charge shall be for instructional purposes only. Any additional fee for activities, books, equipment (to be purchased or rented), or room and board shall not be included in the school's tuition charge.

 

(B)  Other fees:

 

(1)   A school may charge an application, enrollment or registration fee of not more than fifteen per cent of the total tuition charge for the program or one hundred dollars, whichever is the lesser.

 

(2)     All other fees including fees for activities, equipment, books, laboratory supplies, and room and board must be set forth on the school's enrollment agreement and uniformly applied.

 

(C)  Collecting tuition and fees

 

(1)  All schools must collect and assess tuition and fees as follows:

 

(a)   Credit hours - for programs organized on a credit hour basis, schools may collect and financially obligate students for tuition and fees for a maximum of one quarter, semester, or trimester. Any student loans or other financial aid funds received by a school must collected and disbursed in accordance with subsection (D) of this rule.

 

(b)   Clock hours - for programs organized on a clock hour basis, schools may collect  and  financially  obligate  students  for  tuition  and  fees  for  a

 

 

 

maximum of three hundred clock hours of instruction at a time, and may not collect or financially obligate students for tuition and fees for the next three hundred hour segment until it begins. Any student loans or other financial aid funds received by a school must collected and disbursed in accordance with subsection (D) of this rule.

(2) Financial aid funds may be accepted in advance if a lender's policy does not permit multiple disbursements, provided they are deposited in an escrow account. The monies earmarked for tuition purposes must be disbursed and credited to the student's tuition account in equal increments. Likewise, those funds earmarked for books, equipment or living expenses will be disbursed in the same manner. However, under extraordinary circumstances and as documented by the student financial aid officer, these funds may be advanced in a manner which meets the student's current living costs.

(D)Student loans and financial aid

(1) Student loans or other financial aid funds received from federal, state, or local governments or administered under the federal student financial assistance programs governed by Title IV of the "Higher Education Act of 1965," 20 U.S.C.A. 1070 et seq., as amended, must be collected and applied in the manner as controlled by the applicable federal, state, or local regulations.

(2) Student loans or other financial aid funds received from private entities including, but not limited to, banks, financing companies, credit card companies, and other lending sources must be collected or disbursed in the following manner:

(a) Loans or other financing payments for amounts less than $5,000.00 may be disbursed as a single disbursement, regardless of course length.

(b) Loans or other financing payments for amounts greater than $5,000.00 that reflect a class term less than six months must have two equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule is as follows: one-half of the tuition amount released initially, and the remainder released half way through the course term.

(c) Loans or other financing payments for amounts greater than $5,000.00 that reflect a class term greater than six months, but less than twelve months must have three equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule is as follows: one-third of the tuition amount released initially, the second disbursement will be released one-third of the way through the length of the training, and the remainder released two-thirds of the way through the course term.

(d)Loans of other financing payments for amounts greater than $5,000.00

that reflect a class term greater than twelve months must have four equal disbursements. The disbursement schedule is as follows: one-quarter of the tuition amount released initially, the second disbursement will be released one-quarter of the way through the length of the training, the third disbursement will be released half way through the length of the training, and the remainder will be released three-fourths of the way through the training.

(3) No school may enter into any contract or agreement with, or receive any money from, private entities including, but not limited to, banks, financing companies, credit card companies, and other any other private lending sources unless the private entity has a disbursement policy that, at a minimum, meets the requirements of subsection (D)(2) of this rule.

(D)(E) Tuition charges and other fees cannot be discounted in any manner. Discounting is not necessarily limited to the following examples:

(1)    Offering a student applicant a lower tuition rate if payment is made before a certain date.

(2)   Offering an incentive of lower tuition to a student for aiding in the recruitment of other potential or actual students.

(3)   Allowing a student to work at the school in lieu of tuition payments or a lower tuition payment.

(4)   Offering lower tuition for payment in cash.

(5)    Offering lower tuition when other members of a student's family attends the school.

(E)(F) Uniform tuition refund policy.

(1)    An enrollment agreement or application may be canceled within five calendar days after the date of signing provided the school is notified of the cancellation in writing. The school shall promptly refund in full all tuition and fees paid pursuant to the enrollment agreement. Such refund shall be made no later than thirty days after cancellation.

(2)    The state refund policy or a straight pro rata refund policy at the discretion of the school must be uniformly applied to all students, unless the use of federal or state financial aid funds mandates the use of the refund policy prescribed by another governmental entity.

(3)    The refund policy of each registered school must be identified and printed on the enrollment agreement and in the school's catalog.

(4)    Schools are not required to take daily attendance. However, if a schools does not take daily attendance it must develop an alternative method to accurately determine a student's last date of attendance for refund purposes and this alternative method must be approved by the board in writing.

(5)   Refunds shall be made within thirty days after the school has determined that a student has withdrawn unless another refund period is mandated by the use of state or federal financial aid funds.

(6)   State refund policy for programs organized on a credit hour basis.

(a)     A student who starts class and officially withdraws during the first calendar week of the quarter or semester shall be obligated for twenty-five per cent of the tuition for that period plus the registration fee.

(b)    A student who officially withdraws during the second calendar week of the period shall be obligated for fifty per cent of the tuition for that period plus the registration fee.

(c)   A student who officially withdraws during the third calendar week of the period shall be obligated for seventy-five per cent of the tuition for that period plus the registration fee.

(d)    A student who officially withdraws beginning with the fourth calendar week of the period will not be entitled to a refund of any portion of the tuition.

(7)   State refund policy for programs organized on a clock hour basis:

(a)   Generally, for programs operating on a clock hour basis, programs up to three hundred hours will be considered equivalent to a quarter. Programs of three hundred to six hundred hours will be considered equivalent to two quarters and, therefore, need to be divided by two. Programs of more than six hundred to nine hundred clock hours shall be considered to be equivalent to three quarters and need to be divided by three. Programs for more than nine hundred hours but less than one calendar year need to be divided by four. Programs of more than one

year need to be considered the second year and any portion thereof in terms of the three hundred-hour increments detailed above.

(b)   50-300 clock hours per term, quarter, or semester:

(i)   A student who starts class and officially withdraws before the period is ten per cent completed will be obligated for twenty-five per cent of the tuition plus the registration fee.

(ii)     A student who starts class and officially withdraws before the period is twenty per cent completed will be obligated for fifty per cent of the tuition plus the registration fee.

(iii)     A student who starts class and officially withdraws before the period is thirty per cent completed will be obligated for seventy-five per cent of the tuition plus the registration fee.

(iv)   A student who starts class and officially withdraws after the period is thirty per cent completed will not be entitled to a refund of the tuition nor the registration fee.

(c)   Less than 50 clock hours - total program length:

(i)     A student who officially withdraws before the first class of a program and after the five day period is obligated for the registration fee.

(ii)     A student who starts class and officially withdraws before the second class of a program and after the five day period is obligated for twenty-five per cent of the tuition plus the registration fee.

(iii)    A student who starts class and officially withdraws before the third class of a program and after the five day period is obligated for seventy-five per cent of the tuition plus the registration.

(iv)    A student who starts class and officially withdraws after the third class is not entitled to a refund.

(F)(G)  In  the  case  of  student  illness  or  accident,  death  in  the  family,  or  other circumstances beyond the control of the student, the student shall be entitled to

special consideration and the school may settle the account for an amount which is less than that called for by the school's established policy.

(G)(H) Collection procedures used by the school must be consistent with the laws and rules applicable thereto.

Effective:                                10/1/2002

R.C. 119.032 review dates:    3/25/2005

CERTIFIED ELECTRONICALLY

Certification

09/18/2002 10:31 AM

Date

Promulgated Under:   119.03

Statutory Authority:   3332.031

Rule Amplifies:           3332.031

Prior Effective Dates: 1/1/78, 4/16/90 (Emer.),

7/12/90, 10/14/94, 4/17/00,

4/2/01.