College Catalog 2008-2009 — Financial Information

Massachusetts Residents*
Tuition per credit hour	$ 25.00
College fees per credit hour	$125.00
Total per credit hour	$150.00
New England Regional Student Program
Tuition per credit hour	$37.50
College fees per credit hour	$125.00
Total per credit hour	$162.50
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Tuition per credit hour	$230.00
College fees per credit hour	$125.00
Total per credit hour	$355.00
Non-State Supported Courses offered through the Division of Lifelong Learning & Workforce Development Courses (includes some day courses, all web courses, and all courses offered at Leominster, Devens, and Fitchburg campuses.)
Tuition per credit hour	$25.00
College fees per credit hour	$125.00
Total per credit hour	$150.00
Selective Health Science Courses Evening Nursing/Practical Nursing/LPN Bridge to Nursing Tuition per credit hour $25.00 College fees per credit hour 214.00 Total per credit hour $239.00 Day Nursing Program: An additional $50/credit for day Nursing courses is charged in addition to day state-supported tuition and fees; regular tuition and college fees apply to general education courses     Dental Hygiene   Tuition per credit hour $ 25.00 College fees per credit hour 324.00 Total per credit hour 349.00 *Massachusetts Residents A resident student is defined as a US citizen or resident alien who has lived in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for at least six continuous months preceding the beginning date of the academic period for which he/she seeks to enroll. All International students attending this college with a student visa must pay non-resident tuition. Additional Expenses—All Students
Registration fee	$20.00 per semester
Masspirg (optional)	$ 7.00 per semester
Technology access fee	$35.00 per semester
Health insurance*	$840.00** (September-August)
	$575.00 (January-August for spring semester students entering in January)
LEM (laboratory, equipment and materials) fee**	$10.00 per credit for laboratory and other equipment-intensive courses
Student activity fee	$20.00 per semester for students taking 9 credits or more per semester
Audit fee

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* State law mandates that students (with nine credits or more per semester) carry health insurance if not currently insured. There is a mandatory basic plan insurance charge for all students enrolled in nine or more credits. A student who has adequate medical coverage may request a waiver by completing a waiver card and returning it to the student accounts office. Free care is not considered adequate medical coverage.

**The cost for this plan is set by a committee representing all Massachusetts Community Colleges and is subject to change annually.

***LEM (laboratory, equipment and materials) fee applies to all courses with prefixes: ACC 227, ASL, ART, AUT, BCT, BIO (except 103), BSS, CAD, CGD, CET, CHE, CIS, CJU 234, CLS, DHY, DSI 201, 202, EAS, EET, EKG, MAS (except 101, 102), MET, MTC, NRD 120, 130, NUR, PHY, PLB, PTA, SPA, WPT and all courses with section codes WEB, NET, MCO, W2B and TLC.

Cancelation for Non Payment of Charges

Payment of all charges is due in full by the due date specified on the student bill. Students whose accounts have not been paid in full, or otherwise cleared through commitments by other sources will be subject to cancelation of class enrollment. Students will not be allowed to re-enroll without proper payment.

Payment Options

The college accepts payment of tuition and fees by cash, check, money order, Discover, Visa, and MasterCard. A monthly payment plan is also administered by the FACTS Management Co. Financial aid, scholarships, waivers and third party payments are also means available to satisfy payment of the applicable tuition and fees.

Credit Cards

Students may use MasterCard, VISA or Discover to pay their tuition and fees. If you wish to use this service please call student accounts at (978) 630-9149 or (978) 630-9157. You may also make payment online by accessing WebConnect from the college website’s homepage: www.mwcc.edu.

Payment Plan

Students may enroll in a monthly payment plan administered by Nelnet Business Solutions (NBS). A modest enrollment fee is charged but no interest is charged. This option is only available for the fall and spring full semesters. Details on the plan can be found at http://studentaccounts.mwcc.edu.

Third Party Payment

Occasionally a student’s employer or outside agency will satisfy all or part of their obligation to the college. Under these circumstances, authorization from the company or agency is required in order to stop cancelation of classes for non-payment. Please contact the student accounts office (978) 630-9149 with any questions or to submit proper documentation. Student may be required to pay for the course in order to continue if all requirements are not met.

Waivers, Scholarships and Financial Aid

Tuition waivers (for example: senior citizen tuition waivers, veterans waivers, and state-contract driven employee benefits) are required to be submitted to the records office prior to start of classes. Students without documentation may have their classes canceled for non-payment.

Please refer to other sections of the catalog for detailed discussions on senior citizen waivers (page 25), veterans waivers (page 25), financial aid (pages 26-28) and scholarships (pages 28-31).

Refund Policy

In the case of withdrawal, an official withdrawal form must be completed.

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Credit Courses:

The college refund policy is as follows (this policy is subject to change without notice):

A. Application fee is nonrefundable.

B. The registration fee is and the information technology access fee are non-refundable unless a class is canceled by the college and a student is enrolled in no other day or evening classes.

C. The tuition and other fees will be refunded as follows:

1. Prior to the classes starting 100% (excluding registration fee)
2. Through the first week of classes 100% (excluding registration fee)
3. During the second week of classes 50% (excluding registration fee)
4. During the third week of classes 25% (excluding registration fee)
5. After the third week of classes 0%
6. If a class is canceled by the college, all tuition and fees will be refunded.

D. Prior to the start of each semester, the student accounts office will publish and make available the exact dates that define the first through third week of classes applicable to this refund policy.

E. Student financial assistance recipients will have their refunds calculated according to applicable federal regulations.

F. For sessions of eight weeks or less (including all summer courses), each class will be considered to be one week for the refund calculation above.

G. Weekend courses, intersession courses, modular courses, distance learning courses (excluding WEB courses), telecourses, cooperative education, and other non-standard length courses have a special refund policy. Please contact the records office.

Noncredit Courses:

Prior to first class meeting: 100% refund. After first class: no refund

Refund Options

MWCC has partnered with Higher One to provide disbursement services for financial aid and tuition refunds. Under this process MWCC students will receive a Mountain Lion Debt Card. Cards will be mailed to the primary address on file with MWCC. To receive your refund, this card must be activated. During card activation, you will choose how to receive your refund money. The options include directly depositing into a OneAccount (account with Higher One), deposited to another bank of your choice, or mailed, as a paper check, to the address you designate.

For more information about the Mountain Lion Debt Card and refunds, please visit www.MountainLionDebitCard.com. Please contact the student account office (978) 630-9149 with any additional questions.

Senior Citizen Tuition/Fee Waiver

A. Students 60 years and older and Massachusetts residents for at least one year are eligible for waiver of tuition and fees on a space available basis. Eligible senior citizens may not register for classes until one week prior to the start of classes, if space is available, to take advantage of the senior citizen tuition and fee waiver. Individuals registering prior to that time will be expected to pay all applicable tuition and fees. Please call records office for further information (978) 630-9270.

B. The Massachusetts Legislature has approved a number of tuition waiver programs, Categorical Tuition Waivers, for individuals meeting certain criteria. These waivers include the Veterans Tuition Waiver, the National Guard Tuition Waiver, the Massachusetts Rehabilitation Client Waiver, the Native American Waiver, and others. Eligible individuals must present proof of eligibility to receive a tuition waiver of state-supported tuition (classes with a billing attribute of B100). Fees and non-state supported tuition will only be waived when the enabling legislation calls for such action.

C. Eligibility requirements include the following criteria: Be accepted to a degree or certificate program; be enrolled in at least three credits per semester; be making satisfactory academic progress; be a permanent legal resident or Massachusetts for at least one year; be a US citizen or eligible non-citizen; not be in default of a student loan; be in compliance with selective service laws.

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Veterans

For Veteran information, please consult the records office, (978) 630-9270.

To be eligible for veteran tuition waivers:

1. Student must be enrolled in an associate degree or certificate program.
2. Student must be taking credit courses and be a permanent legal resident of Massachusetts for at least one year prior to the start of the semester.
3. National Guard and Persian Gulf waivers apply only to day school, state-funded courses. Veteran waivers do not apply to day or evening courses offered by the Division of Lifelong Learning & Workforce Development.

Important:

The Vietnam Veteran waiver and the Massachusetts National Guard Tuition and Fee Assistance Program will apply to state and non-state supported tuition. All appropriate fees must be paid.

Policy on Unpaid Debt

It is MWCC’s policy that students or former students having any unpaid obligations for tuition or any fees due the college and who have not made acceptable arrangements for settlement of such obligations, will be subject to the withholding of any grades, grade reports, transcripts, diplomas and certificates, and will not be eligible to enroll in any course or program of the college until satisfactory settlement of unpaid debts. Students will incur all costs of collection if the college must place their accounts with a collection agency and with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for intercept of other state payments (tax refunds, etc.). All receipts for payment must be issued in the student’s name, regardless of who is paying the bill. Former students who have a current student loan default will be subject to the same prohibitions.