National Student Exchange

  

Cost of your Exchange

Students from every participating institution benefit by paying much less than the non-resident (out-of-state) tuition/fees one would pay if you transferred directly to an NSE member institution. The total costs (tuition, fees, housing, meals, fees) varies among the NSE schools.

Important: Please read the following sections on tuition plans and financing carefully. You and your parents/family
must fully understand the functioning and implications of your exchange based on Tuition Plan (A or B) offered by
the host institution. Within the school description in the current NSE Directory, is a black box, which indicates
the payment plan(s) a school accepts.

Sometimes it may cost more if:

• You exchange to an area with a considerably higher cost of living (Hawaii, Alaska, and most large cities).
• Your host school’s room and board costs are higher than WKU.

Host Payment Plan A and Home Payment Plan B

WKU participates on both Tuition Plan A and Plan B. This means that you may exchange to a host school that
participates on either Plan.

 

Host Payment Plan A:

You pay tuition/fees to the host institution, and normally NSE members set this at the resident tuition rate with housing, meals and other fees paid to the host institution. Normally, billing will be from your host school for tuition/fees, room and board, etc. You will be enrolled at WKU in an NSE “holding” course that will be replaced by the host institution’s transfer credit for your completed coursework. (See Reinstatement section below.)

 

Home Payment Plan B:

You pay WKU tuition as approved by WKU’s Board of Regents, while housing, meals and other fees are paid to the host institution. Plan B students are enrolled at WKU in an NSE “holding” course that allows your WKU bill to be processed. This course will be replaced by the host institution’s transfer credit for your completed coursework. (See Reinstatement section below.) You will receive two bills – one from WKU for tuition, and one from your host school for room and board. You may also be billed by your host institution for items such as an orientation fee, health fee, or course fee.

The final WKU NSE tuition is usually determined in June. The NSE Coordinator will provide you the estimated tuition at your advising sessions.

 

Paying for your Exchange

Aid is possible and is straightforward if you understand the process and follow through on the items needed from you and your family. Follow the directions and start early. Understand that you will begin the financial aid application process before being placed at your exchange school so you need to follow the instructions we supply. 

Your first step is to outline the total cost to attend each school you are interested in attending. Be sure to include normal tuition costs even though they are paid to WKU. Each NSE school provides their costs on the www.nse.org web site for use to calculate your need. We provide you a budget worksheet to share with Student Financial Services to calculate your aid eligibility. It is the policy of the National Student Exchange Consortium that “The institution at which tuition/fees are paid shall be responsible for assessing need; and committing, awarding, and disbursing federally funded aid.”

 

Host Payment Plan A:

Since you are paying tuition to the host institution, you apply for Federal financial aid through the host school. In the NSE directory, you will find the school code for use on the FAFSA and other financial aid documents. Aid will be distributed from the host school, and the host school NSE coordinator will communicate with you concerning this process. The WKU NSE Coordinator is always available to help with this process. For schools outside of Kentucky, you may not be able to use state-sponsored nor WKU-sponsored aid that is specific to Kentucky schools and/or WKU. Our financial aid office will clarify you eligibility for these funds.

 

Home Payment Plan B:

You pay your tuition to WKU and room/meal/miscellaneous fees to your host school. The NSE holding course allows your financial aid, except Federal Work Study (FWS), to be processed at WKU. Your financial aid will be based on the cost of attending WKU. Follow the regular procedure for filing financial aid.

 

Important:

Some exchange schools will require early payment for housing and meals. You must find out whether or not your host school will wait for financial aid to be processed. While it is true that exchanges generally do not cost more, make sure you bring enough money with you to get you through at least the first month (books, rent, food, entertainment). Furthermore, you may need to pay in full or make a deposit for housing and/or meal plans in advance.