Cost of Attendance
The Cost of Attendance is an ESTIMATE of your educational expenses for a given period of enrollment. Your period of enrollment is the terms listed in your financial aid offer. Your Cost of Attendance should not be confused with your Student Account Statement (bill).
The Cost of Attendance may be different for individual students, based on such factors as enrollment patterns, state of legal residency and housing status. The Cost of Attendance is not constant and will vary at each institution. When determining the Cost of Attendance the following elements are taken into consideration: fees and tuition; room and board; books and supplies; transportation; and personal expenses.
2023-2024 Academic Year/Full-Time Student*
Students in an 8 Week Block only*
Graduate Students*
Graduate Students in an 8 Week Block only*
*These are estimated figures for Financial Aid Office purposes and aid offers for on and off campus attendance. For actual fees/costs please check the Student Accounts web page or email them directly at [email protected].
Cost of Attendance Frequently Asked Questions
Your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is the end result of the information you submitted on your FAFSA. All the data you enter into the FAFSA is put through a complex formula (called Federal Methodology) to determine your EFC. The EFC is a measure of how much you and your family can be expected to contribute to your Cost of Attendance for the year. The EFC calculation formula is specified in the law authorizing federal financial aid. Pell grants are directly tied to EFC.
Remaining Need, also called Financial Need or just simply Need, is defined in the federal regulations as Cost of Attendance minus Expected Family Contribution. Pell Grants, Work-Study, Federal Direct Subsidized Loans, Nursing Loans, Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants (SEOG) and some scholarships require you to demonstrate financial need.
Direct Costs may include tuition and fees and on-campus room and board. These are all items you pay directly to LC State.
The tuition and fees component of your Cost of Attendance does not include course, lab, extended programs or overload fees.
The LC State Financial Aid Office uses average costs, instead of actual costs, for students in similar situations. Your actual Direct Costs will be viewable on your Student Account Statement starting in July (for Fall semester) or December (for Spring semester).
Indirect Costs are incurred by you while you attend LC State, but not paid to LC State. Indirect Costs include books and supplies, transportation, personal expenses and off-campus room and board.
Yes. Your Cost of Attendance is driven by your enrollment status with LC State. Students attending at different enrollment levels will incur different costs and your Cost of Attendance will change accordingly.
For example, we assume that a student attending half-time is not coming to campus every day. Therefore the Transportation component of the Cost of Attendance is a reduced amount for half-time students.
Because your Cost of Attendance changes with your enrollment level, your financial aid package may also change.
Sometimes you incur costs beyond the amount included in the Cost of Attendance. For example, if you are commuting every day from out of town you could conceivably exceed the Transportation component of the Cost of Attendance. In these cases you may request a Cost of Attendance adjustment by submitting a letter and appropriate documentation to the Financial Aid Office. In some cases the increase may allow for additional capacity. For more information on this process contact the Financial Aid Office.
Payment Options and Disbursement of Funds
Several payment options are available for students who have a financial obligation to LC State. In addition to cash, checks, debit cards and E-Check, students may pay fees with Visa, MasterCard, Discover or American Express credit cards (for specific payment options and any service fees associated please contact Student Accounts). In the event that a student does not have the resources to pay fees in full, payment plans may be available. Students who have no delinquent accounts with LC State and have not defaulted on any provisions of financial obligation to LC State are given special consideration and may be permitted to defer fees. A payment plan requires a 50% down payment and a signed contract for the balance.
All fees and tuition must be paid in full or have a payment plan contract signed by the fifth official day of the semester. If your financial aid is not available, you will be expected to pay your fees from some other source.
Financial aid should be available before the first official day of the semester for students who have met the Priority Deadline, completed their Aid Offer, and are enrolled for the appropriate number of credits two weeks before classes start. Residual checks and scholarship assistance are generally released the last business day before the first official day of the semester. For additional information about fees, payment deadlines and residual funds release, contact Student Accounts at 208-792-2790 or [email protected].
Students who are attending both semesters during the academic year may receive 50% of their total award at the beginning of each semester (Fall/Spring). Students who fail to meet the Priority Deadline must be prepared to make registration, housing and meal payments by the established deadline.