Course Fee Policy
Augsburg University
Office of the Provost
Definition
A course fee is a charge applied at the course level for consumable expenses directly related to student participation in a course. Course fees are based on plausible estimates of anticipated costs or previous records of actual costs. They should be kept as low as possible and should be considered in the context of other materials (such as textbooks) that students are required to purchase over and above tuition. Approved course fees are built into the program budget. They do not exist as a separate account from which the faculty member might draw.
Course fee revenue and related expenses shall not be co-mingled with other activities of the academic unit’s cost center. Each course fee must be accounted for using a unique account code (5406).
Examples
Examples of costs that may be recovered by assessing a course fee include:
- Consumable supplies, such as art supplies and non-inventoried instructional materials, used as part of the course;
- Required travel expenses for students to visit off-campus sites as part of course requirements;
- Fees assessed to pay for services external to the University (such as museum entry or theater tickets).
- Pass through fees that are paid by the University on behalf of the students.
General costs related to the development, instruction, and assessment of a course are expected to be borne by the department or university. Examples of costs that cannot be covered by course fees include:
- Materials related to the mechanics of a course, such as course outlines, syllabi, exams, and similar handouts
- The purchase, maintenance, and replacement costs of capital equipment;
- The costs of staffing courses, including personnel employed to aid in the course, such as teaching apprentices, peer mentors, and guest lecturers.
Travel to remote sites, whether international, national, or regional, that involve overnight stays should be budgeted separately, in partnership with and in alignment with policies put in place by CGEE.
Students are expected to pay directly for the cost of supplemental written materials if they are to have permanent ownership of the materials. The costs of these materials will not pass through the course fee system. If the department does not wish to cover the costs of these materials, the materials should be sold to the student through the University Bookstore. This simplifies the financial transaction and helps to avoid potential copyright infringement.
Course fee approval process
Requests to assess a course fee (or to change an existing one) are to be submitted via the course fee request form and must include a budget detailing what costs will be covered by the fee and a revenue estimate based on projected enrollment. Generally, course fee budgets should be built on the basis of 2-3 year rolling averages of expenses incurred in the course that are covered by the course fee. If requesting a change to an existing course fee, any prior surplus or deficit should be explained. The request initiates with the department or program and must be approved by the School Director. The School Director must secure the approval of the Provost prior to final approval.
Course fees and expenses will be reviewed annually.
Deadlines for requesting course fees
The deadlines for submitting a request for a new course fee or to modify an existing course fee will be:
- Summer and fall terms – submitted to School Director by February 15; School Director forwards to Provost by March 1.
- Spring term – submitted to School Director by October 1; School Director forwards to Provost by October 15.
Course fees are published in the Course Schedule on Records and Registration. When a student enrolls in a course with a course fee, the student’s tuition and fee assessment summary will include the fee.
Accountability
Course fees will be reviewed for reasonableness annually by the School Director and the Provost, with follow-up with the Department Chair or Program Director whenever an account balance at the end of a term exceeds 20% of revenue collected for the course.
If an account is in deficit (by more than 20% of annual revenue), units should consider whether the fee should be increased or whether there are other funding sources that should be used to fund the activity. Accumulated deficits may be charged against department operations budgets.