The Office of the Bursar is responsible for the maintenance of student accounts pertaining to acceptance fees, tuition billing, charges, payments, financial aid postings*, and refunds.

*Please note: the awarding and disbursement of financial aid is managed by the Office of Student Aid.

Deposit Information

Your student’s first contact with the Office of the Bursar is when he or she accepts an offer to attend Penn State. In addition to the $130 enrollment fee, all degree-seeking students must have a $100 general deposit on their account. The deposit is similar to a security deposit and does not offset student account balances or tuition charges. The general deposit is transferred to your student’s account when he or she graduates or leaves Penn State and will be used to cover any last-minute charges, and the unused balance will be returned to your student.

When will my student receive a tuition statement?

Account statements are prepared on a monthly basis. Billing begins in early August for fall semester and early December for spring semester, with a due date on the 22nd of that month. However, this may vary slightly depending on when a student enrolls in classes. Enrollment typically occurs at New Student Orientation.

Students will receive notification via their Penn State e-mail account* when their statement is available to view/pay through the Student Center in LionPATH. Residence hall charges are included on the statement, if applicable. Paper statements are NOT mailed.

*The Office of the Bursar, as well as other Penn State departments, will communicate important information to students through their Penn State e-mail account. It is important that students monitor their PSU email account.

Student Checklist

  • Obtain PSU ID card
  • Sign up for eRefund (direct deposit)
  • Grant online “authorized Payer” access for parents/other individuals (optional)
  • Grant online “delegated access” access for parents (optional)

Financial Responsibility Agreement

Students must sign a Financial Responsibility Agreement (FRA) prior to enrolling in classes each semester. The FRA is a student’s promise to take financial responsibility for payment of his or her account.

How can students pay the tuition statement?

The eCheck option is a fast and convenient method to pay the tuition statement directly from a personal checking account drawn on a U.S. bank. There is no charge to pay by eCheck. Credit card payments (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express) are also accepted. A 1.5% convenience fee will be charged for credit card payments. 

If students want to mail a check, a payment stub may be printed and mailed with the payment to Penn State. The payment must be received and posted to the student’s account by the due date on the student’s statement (22nd of the month) to avoid a late fee. Please allow five to seven business days for processing after the payment is received.

Are payment plans available?

Penn State offers an Installment Payment Plan every semester. Enrollment in the plan allows students/authorized payers to pay 1/3 of the semester charges (tuition, fees, room and meals, if applicable) each month, over a period of three months. Fall semester payment due dates are typically in August, September, and October. Spring semester due dates are typically in December, January, and February. There is a $45 non-refundable enrollment fee per semester, which covers administrative costs. The payments can be made with eCheck or credit card (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, or American Express).

Students/authorized payers can enroll in the plan online once the tuition statement is available. To enroll with 1/3 of the payment, students/authorized payers must complete the enrollment process and make the first payment prior to the first installment due date. Enrolling after the first installment due date will require an initial payment of 2/3 of the balance payable at the time of enrollment. Enrollment in the Installment Payment Plan is not available after the second installment due date.

What if a student has additional student aid?

The Anticipated Financial Aid section on a student’s tuition bill reflects the most current known available financial aid. Students with additional scholarships, grants, or loans that are not reflected on the bill should contact the Office of Student Aid.

Outside Scholarship Information

Many students will receive scholarships from various organizations, agencies, and foundations as they graduate from high school. In order for your student’s tuition bill to reflect these outside awards, it is important to send the scholarship checks as early as possible to the address below:

Student Financial Services
Attn: Outside Scholarships
109 Shields Building
University Park, PA 16802

For additional information, please visit the Student Financial Services website.

eRefund

For the quickest delivery of a refund, students are encouraged to have their refund electronically deposited into a bank account.

Tuition Assessment & Planning

Penn State assesses tuition based on the student’s campus, college, major, residency classification, credit load, and semester classification. Once an undergraduate student completes 59.1 or more total credits (which include credits earned through advanced placement or transferred from another institution), the student is considered to have obtained Junior/Senior status at Penn State. Current academic year tuition rates can be found at tuition.psu.edu.