Payments may be made in a variety of ways (see https://bursar.siu.edu/account-services/payment.php for more details):

• in person using cash, check, or money order
• by mail using check or money order
• online using a checking or savings account ¹
• online using a credit or debit card ²
• by phone using a credit card ²

¹ This will post the next business day.
² This will post the next business day and will include a service fee.

Valid credit and debit cards include those from Visa, Master Card, American Express, and Discover.  Payments made by mail and in person should include the remittance copy of the statement.

All student fees and other financial obligations to the university are payable as billed by semester (or session), and no student shall be enrolled in classes in any educational unit if they have a past due balance greater than $200, except upon authorization of the Provost and Vice Chancellor.

A service charge of one and one-half percent per month (18% APR) will be assessed on the balance of the amount due which is unpaid at the next billing cycle.  To avoid the service charge, students must pay the total amount due on the statement prior to the next billing date or else be enrolled in the installment payment plan.  Detailed information is in the Schedule of Classes published each semester on the Registrar's Office website, https://registrar.siu.edu/schedclass/.

Following the end of each semester, students not registered for the next semester that have delinquent account balances will be mailed a series of letters requesting payment.  If payments, or arrangements, are not made on a timely basis, the account may be placed with a collection agency with a collection fee added to the account.  Should it be necessary for an outside agency to effect collection, reasonable collection costs (up to thirty percent) shall be added and shall be paid by the debtor.  If the University obtains judgment from a court of competent jurisdiction, the debtor shall be liable for the collection agency fee as well as reasonable court costs and attorney's fees.

A claim on delinquent accounts may be submitted to the State of Illinois Comptroller's Office in accordance with the Illinois State Collection Act of 1986 which authorizes the deduction of the amount you owe to SIU Carbondale from an amount normally due you (i.e., payroll deduction, tax refund, etc.) and your account may be referred to a credit bureau.  As SIU Carbondale is a non-profit institution of higher learning, student receivable accounts are considered to be educational loans offered for the sole purpose of financing an education and may not be dischargeable in bankruptcy proceedings.

Students who process a program change which places them in a different tuition and fee category than the one for which they originally registered will be billed additional tuition and fees when appropriate.  If the change places them in a smaller tuition and fee category and if they processed the program change within the necessary time frame, they will receive a refund provided their account carries no other charges.

Request for a withdrawal from the University is initiated in the Registrar's Office and approved by the student's academic dean as part of the normal withdrawal procedures.

Refund of tuition and fees based on withdrawal from the University on or prior to the withdrawal deadlines is made without consideration of the student's reason for withdrawing.  There is no refund of the admission application fee.

No tuition or mandatory student fees shall be refunded in cases where withdrawal occurs after the deadlines stated in Board of Trustees policy, except for students in grave circumstances who demonstrate that, for reasons beyond their control, they are utterly unable to continue their educational programs.  Refunds of tuition and general student fees approved in such cases are made at the University's discretion upon a determination by the Chancellor or his/her designee of the existence of one of the following conditions:

• Accident or illness occurring prior to the withdrawal deadline, which incapacitated the student and made it impossible for them to withdraw prior to the dead-line.
• Accident or illness in the student's immediate family, which occurs prior to the withdrawal deadline and is of such nature as to prevent the student from continuing their education.
• Emotional or psychological trauma resulting from an incident which occurred prior to the deadline and for which the student is undergoing counseling or therapy.
• A disciplinary, academic, or financial aid termination appeal, which is not accepted if the appeal was initiated prior to the withdrawal deadline.
• Induction into military service for a period not less than six months.

Students in military service with the State of Illinois pursuant to the orders of the Governor have the right to receive a full monetary credit or refund for funds paid to any Illinois public university, college or community college if the person is placed into a period of military service with the State of Illinois in the event of state emergencies pursuant to the orders of the Governor and is unable to attend the university or college for a period of seven or more days.  Students may elect to receive course credit for all of their courses rather than a refund.

The refund of tuition and fees in cases where withdrawal from the University occurs after the deadlines specified in the Board of Trustees refund policy is governed by the following procedures.

The Provost and Vice Chancellor or his/her designee will serve as the Chancellor's representative for considering requests for refund of tuition and fees after the time period specified in the refund policy.

Request for such refunds are initiated in the Registrar's Office (Withdrawals & Petitions), which will furnish the student with the necessary information and appropriate form.

A student requesting a refund after the specified periods must withdraw from the University before the request for refund will be acted upon.

Tuition and fees will not be refunded for courses which have already been completed earlier in the semester, and for which a final grade has been earned.

It is expected that petitions for exception to this policy be submitted within 30 days of the end of the semester.  The student must submit written verification of the reasons supporting the request, i.e., (a) written verification from a physician as to the accident or illness to the student or in the student's immediate family and the student's inability to withdraw prior to the deadline; or (b) written verification from a physician or counselor which supports their statement concerning emotional or psychological trauma and which substantiates that the trauma resulted from an incident which occurred prior to the deadline; or (c) a copy of the letter denying a disciplinary, academic or financial aid termination appeal and verification that the appeal was filed prior to the withdrawal deadline; or (d) written correspondence from the military which verifies when the student is to report for military service and the length of time the student is expected to serve.

The student requesting the refund shall be required to substantiate to the satisfaction of the Registrar's Office (Withdrawals & Petitions) the nature, extent, and seriousness of conditions or circumstances which are the basis for the refund request.

The Registration Appeals Committee will make a decision on the request and inform the student as soon as practical.

Exception to the Policy for Withdrawal Deadline

An appeal for an exception to the policy for withdrawal, including requests for exceptions to tuition and fee policy, must be filed with the Registration Appeals Committee within one year of the end of the term in question.  The Committee, comprised of representation from Academic Affairs and Student Affairs, as well as faculty constituent groups, meets regularly to consider these requests.  The appeal must document extenuating circumstances.  Additional information regarding the appeal process is available at Registrar.siu.edu.

Graduate School Waivers

All full-time University employees who wish to use the employee tuition waiver (faculty and staff) who are classified as graduate students must seek approval of the Graduate School to enroll in more than eight semester hours of courses in Fall or Spring and more than six semester hours of courses in Summer.

Tuition Waivers for Dependents of Deceased Employees

Surviving spouses and dependent children of a deceased SIU Carbondale employee may be eligible for a tuition waiver if the service time of the deceased employee was at least five years in a full-time capacity and if the employee was in active, retired or disability status at the time of death.  In the case of a dependent child of a deceased employee, the applicant must have been less than 22 years of age at the date of death of the employee, or enrolled in the University at that time.  Applicants who are themselves employed by SIU Carbondale in a status other than student work are not eligible for this waiver.  Human Resources administers applications for this waiver.  More information about this waiver is available here.  Questions concerning the process should be directed to Employee Records at (618) 453-6696.

Inter-institutional Undergraduate Tuition Waiver

Children of employees who have been employed by any Illinois senior public university for at least seven years shall receive a 50% tuition waiver for undergraduate tuition.  The student must qualify for formal admission to the university and must be under the age of 25 at the beginning of the academic year during which the waiver is to be effective.  Eligible applicants who have maintained satisfactory progress toward graduation may have the partial tuition waiver renewed each semester until they have reached 130 semester hours of undergraduate partial tuition waiver benefits.  Human Resources administers applications for this waiver.  More information about this waiver is available here.  Questions concerning the process should be directed to Employee Records at (618) 453-6696.

University Undergraduate Tuition Waiver

In addition to the Inter-institutional tuition waiver benefit listed above, a waiver will be extended to eligible children of a seven year employee of Southern Illinois University who has retired or who is on permanent layoff status, and to the natural or adopted children of a domestic partner, who is not an employee at Southern Illinois University Carbondale.  Subject to the requirements listed above, an eligible child will be entitled to a 50% waiver of the undergraduate tuition for the number of credit hours in which the student is enrolled at Southern Illinois University.  This waiver applies to the Southern Illinois University system only.