The tuition for the 2009-2010 academic year is $35,992 U.S. ($17,996 per term). Payment of charges for any given term must be made before students are permitted to register for that term. Term bills for the fall term will be sent via e-mail in mid-July and payment will be due on August 3. Term bills for the spring term will be sent via e-mail in mid-December and payment will be due on January 4. Payments should be made online or directly to Student Receivables, Holyoke 556, Cambridge, MA 02138. Students should examine the Student Receivables Office Guide to Student Billing.
Students must pay full tuition for at least the minimum number of terms of residency required by the degree program. Restrictions are placed on the awarding of degrees and diplomas, participation in commencement, and on the release of transcripts until all indebtedness to the university is satisfied.
Upon request, the university will permit students to pay their bills for the academic year in eight monthly installments. There is a service charge of $35 per term for this payment option.
Students using the monthly payment option must pay any back balance plus one-quarter of their charges for a given term before they will be permitted to register for that term. GSD students who are negligent in making their monthly payments during one semester will not be permitted to use the option in subsequent semesters.
Activity Fee
The Activity Fee supports GSD Student Forum and student organization activities.
Expenses
Because personal needs and tastes vary, only very general estimates of living costs (all in U.S. dollars) can be given. The following expenses—term bill charges and estimated living expenses—are offered by the GSD for planning purposes. The term bill charges are fixed for an academic year, and the estimated living expenses are considered as an average minimum cost for a single student; adjustments should be made for families and other special require-ments. The student activity fee supports GSD Student Forum and student organi-zation activities.
Costs are computed for the academic year only—approximately 36 weeks, including interim vacation periods. No allowance is included for long-distance travel to or from the student’s home or for any summer and vacation expenses.
Projected budget for academic year
2009–2010:
| Tuition: | $35,992 |
| Health Service Fee: | $1,126 |
| Blue Cross/Blue Shield: | $1,714 |
| Course Supplies and Books: | $2,528 |
| Room or Shared Apartment, Utilities, and Board: |
$11,406 |
| Personal (including local travel only): |
$2,992 |
| Student Activities Fee: | $100 |
| Total (for a single student): | $55,858 |
| The projected budget total for doctoral students is: | $55,094 |
Tuition for Less than Full-Time Enrollment
Students who have received written authorization from the program director and the Office of Student Services to enroll on a part-time basis will pay tuition according to the following schedule.
Studio, or thesis, and 2 nonstudio courses (16 units)
full tuition
Doctoral thesis (16 units)
full tuition
Studio and 1 nonstudio course (12 units)
three-fourths tuition
Master’s thesis (12 units)
three-fourths tuition
Studio or 2 nonstudio courses (8 units)
one-half tuition
1 nonstudio course (4 units), or fee for doctoral thesis extension
one-fourth tuition
Withdrawals and Tuition Charges
Any student who is granted a leave or withdraws from the university after registration will be held responsible for tuition charges according to the following schedule:
Fall Term
Leaves on or before September 16
no tuition charge
Leaves on or before October 7
one-fourth tuition
Leaves on or before November 4
one-half tuition
Leaves on or before December 3
three-fourths tuition
After December 3
full tuition
Spring Term
Leaves on or before February 8
no tuition charge
Leaves on or before February 26
one-fourth tuition
Leaves on or before March 26
one-half tuition
Leaves on or before April 27
three-fourths tuition
After April 27
full tuition
Eligibility for All Financial Aid Awards
Students must be registered at least half-time in a degree program. To be eligible for federal aid and GSD grant, students must follow the requirements for satisfactory academic progress (see Grades site). In addition to those policies, students must adhere to the policies listed in the GSD Financial Aid Handbook. The Financial Aid Handbook is distributed to aid recipients with each year’s award letter. Students must apply each year for financial aid; continuing student applications and instructions are distributed during the spring semester.
Additional information, including detailed explanations of aid sources, is available on the GSD Financial Aid website.
Graduation and Commencement Participation
The Office of Student Services maintains the following policy in regard to participation in commencement ceremonies. Students who have not fulfilled their degree requirements, or have an outstanding financial obligation to the university, will not be allowed to walk in commencement exercises.
For students who have fulfilled their degree requirements but have outstanding obligations to the university, the following policies apply:
Students whose outstanding term bills are less than $500, or who have outstanding library books or fines, telephone bills will have their diplomas withheld by the GSD. Their names will be listed in the Harvard commencement program, and they will be eligible to participate in commencement cere-monies, but they will receive an empty envelope. The GSD will release diplomas to these students upon notification from the Student Billing Office that their term bills are cleared or upon notifica-tion from other offices. NOTE: Students with outstanding term bills greater than $500 will have their degrees withheld by the university, and they will not eligible to participate in commencement ceremonies.