The College of Charleston Board of Trustees voted unanimously on June 9, 2020, to approve a tuition freeze for the 2020-21 academic year. The board’s decision comes as students and their families are dealing with the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“This is a critical time for our students and families, and as trustees, we are doing everything we can to help keep the cost of a College of Charleston education affordable and accessible,” says Board of Trustees Chair David Hay ’81.
Tuition for South Carolina undergraduate students will remain at $6,259 per semester. Out-of-state undergraduate tuition will stay at $16,424 per semester. Students in the Graduate School (the University of Charleston, S.C.) will pay $6,885 per semester, and out-of-state residents in the Graduate School will pay $18,066 per semester.
As a result of today’s action, the College will continue to rank sixth for in-state tuition and fourth for out-of-state tuition among South Carolina’s 13 four-year public colleges and universities.
“The pandemic has taken a tremendous toll not only on our collective health and psyche, but our economy as well,” says College of Charleston President Andrew T. Hsu. “I appreciate and applaud the Board of Trustees for not increasing tuition. While College administrators will need to be even more creative in dealing with rising costs, not raising tuition is the right thing to do.”
The board adopted a three-month continuing budget resolution for the first quarter of fiscal year 2021, which will be in effect July 1, 2020, through Sept. 30, 2020. The board will meet again in late August or early September to consider a full-year operating budget.
The budget includes a 2.65 percent increase in the rates for the College’s middle-rate residence halls and a 2.24 percent increase in the cost of meal plans.
