Many students and families have questions about how their financial aid is applied and how much they will be expected to pay out of pocket.
There are five main categories of charges that may appear on a student's Invoice: Tuition, Fees, Student Health Insurance, Room and Board. Costs are charged by semester, that is, for the Fall (September to December,) Spring (January to May) and Summer (May to August.) Invoices are sent for Fall beginning in July, for Spring beginning in December and for Summer beginning in May. You will continue to receive periodic invoices until your bill for the semester is paid, including any charges from a prior period. No charges for tuition and fees will appear on the bill until the student has registered for classes.
- Tuition: At the University of Maine at Fort Kent, tuition is charged on a per credit basis. Each course you take is worth a certain number of credits; most commonly 3, but there are courses worth 1, 2, 4, or more credits. There are 3 different tuition rates: Instate students pay $170 per credit, Out of State Students pay $426 per credit and Canadians as well as students in certain New England Board of Higher Education (NEBHE) programs pay $257 per credit. In order to know the tuition to be charged, you need to know which category you fall into and how many credits you are going to take and then multiply the rate by the number of credits. (Tuition taken at other University of Maine System campuses, or on-line, may have different rates.)
- Fees: There are two main types of Fees at UMFK. The Activity Fee is based on the number of credits taken each semester. The Fee is $3.75 per credit taken, up to 15 credits, so the maximum is $56.25 per semester. The Unified Fee is based on the number of credits taken each semester. The Fee is $18 per credit taken. (In addition, there may be other fees tied to a particular course, for example a Lab Fee, and some on-line courses carry separate fees.)
- Student Health Insurance: UMFK requires all students to be covered by an adequate insurance policy. All students will be automatically enrolled in the UMFK plan. Students who already have adequate coverage and wish to have the expense for this coverage removed from their bill may do so by providing other insurance information online at www.crossagency.com/umfk.
- Room: If you will be living in the Dormitory, you will pay a Room charge. Students living in The Lodge pay $1910 per semester for suites and students living in Crocker or Powell Hall pay $1575 per semester for a room.
- Meal Plan: Students who live in a Dormitory are required to participate in the Meal Plan. There are three options: 19 meals per week for $1400.00 per semester, 14 meals per week for $1400.00 per semester and 10 meals per week for $1300.00 per semester. Students living off-campus have the option to sign up for the meal plan and if so, the charge will appear on the bill.
These are what we call "Direct Expenses" - those that are paid to the University directly. In addition, students encounter other costs connected to their attendance at college. These expenses include Books and Supplies, Transportation to and from school, Personal Expenses, and Living Expenses if the student does not live in the Dormitory as above. These "Indirect Expenses" - not paid to the school - are also included when the amount of financial aid is determined, so a student's financial aid may exceed the Direct Charges.
All financial aid is applied first to the student’s account at the University. Then, if the total financial aid exceeds these “Direct Expenses” that must be paid to UMFK, the student will receive a “Refund Check” for these other, non-Direct costs once all financial aid has been received for the semester. Refund checks are prepared as early as possible, but students, especially Freshman, should be aware that it may be several weeks into the semester before this money is available. Other delays may occur if the student has not completed all paperwork at UMFK or at the Bank, or registers late for courses.
Available on this web site you will find two worksheets. One, The UMFK Amount Owed/Refund worksheet helps you determine if you will have to pay out of pocket or will receive a refund, based on your actual registration. The other, the Estimated Bill worksheet, helps you to estimate what your bill will be for the semester if you have not yet actually registered. Remember that these are all estimates. These worksheets should help you answer such questions as
- How much will I owe?
- Do I need to take out a student loan and if so, for how much?
You can find your individual most up to date information on billing and financial aid on-line at Bengal Tracker/DSIS at:
General information on Tuition and Fees is available at:
We hope this information will be helpful to you. Please remember that we are available to talk with you in both the Business Office (207-834-7552) and the Financial Aid Office (207-834-7606) and we are located next to each other in Cyr Hall.