Business Office

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Tuition and Fees Schedule

The tuition fee per credit at Southeast Tech is established by action of the South Dakota State Board of Technical Education and is subject to revision at any time. 

Some programs require students to purchase a Southeast Tech laptop during their first semester, and payments are estimated at $1034 (base model PC), $1,612 (advanced model PC) or $3,070 (Mac). Your laptop model will depend on the requirements for your major.  Some Southeast Tech programs now allow students to bring their own laptop.  These students may choose to purchase a laptop through Southeast Tech.  For more information see the Student Information - Laptop Program  section of this Catalog.

Online courses have an additional $50 per credit fee.

Tuition & Fee Payment Due Date

The tuition and fee payment due date is the first business day following the end of the drop period, with the disbursement of excess financial aid loans and grants following in approximately one week.  The actual fee payment day will be posted on STInet, and in the Business Office, approximately 30 days prior to the start of each semester.

It is the student’s responsibility to be aware of all policies and regulations regarding registration and cancellation as stated in the student catalog. By registering for classes, students are entering into a legal agreement to pay all tuition and fees, including any nonrefundable fees. Students are acknowledging that failure to make the required payment by the due date may result in additional late and installment fees, inability to register for classes and/or campus testing sessions, and withholding of transcripts and/or diploma.

NOTE: Students with unpaid tuition and fees, within the current term, will be administratively withdrawn from future term registrations. Students will be notified in writing of withdrawal due to failure to pay balances due.

Tuition and fees are due in the Business Office each semester according to the Tuition and Fee Payment Schedule that is posted on STInet Student tab > Student Finances > Business Office and is available at the Business Office Cashier window. Adjustments to student accounts are recorded as necessary, due to schedule changes that result from the course add and drop process. At the beginning of each semester the Business Office will post a message to STInet regarding the availability of student statements and an email is sent to your Southeast Tech email account. Student account information is available online. Statements can be viewed and printed via STInet on the Student tab > Student Finances > Business Office page. It is the student’s responsibility to check email and STInet on a regular basis.   

Term Charges Schedule:

Fall classes - available for viewing on STInet after July 15
Spring classes - available for viewing on STInet after December 1
Summer classes - available for viewing on STInet after April 15

NOTE: Semester tuition and fees are due the first business day following the end of the drop period, or within 48 hours of the date charges appear on student accounts, if courses have been added after the drop period ends.  Past due account balances are subject to late fees and/or account holds.  Any course added late in a term must be paid within 48 hours from the course being added to your account or the additional billed amount is considered past due and subject to late fees and/or an account hold.

It is the student’s responsibility to maintain an accurate student address for billing purposes with the Student Success office. (Students may change their address on STInet).

Additional monthly statements will show corrections to student account billings and payments received.

Tuition and Fees Refunds/Excess Financial Aid

Most grants, scholarships and loans are applied directly to student accounts. If financial aid proceeds have not been applied to an account, or the amount does not cover 100% of tuition and fees due, the student is responsible to pay the remaining balance within the dates listed in the Tuition and Fee Payment Schedule.

A credit balance on a student account is created when excess financial aid remains after all eligible charges on a student’s account are paid in full, or schedule changes result in a change in tuition and fees due, or when an excess payment is made on the account. After the financial aid disbursement date, any additional credit balance checks will be issued weekly and held at the Business Office cashier window located in the HUB. Students must present a school or state issued form of identification that includes a photograph, prior to receiving a refund check. 

NOTE: Financial aid funds are not dispersed until after the drop registration period. Students who have completed all of the required financial aid paperwork, and will receive their financial aid on or before the financial aid disbursement day, will be eligible to use the amount of financial aid that exceeds their tuition and fees total to charge the cost of textbooks and course required supplies to a student account at the Southeast Tech Bookstore. The individual students’ charge limit will not exceed the amount of excess financial aid available. Students not meeting this requirement will need to make alternative arrangements to pay for textbooks. 

Forms of Payment

The Business Office accepts cash, Visa/MasterCard/Discover credit cards and personal checks for payments on student accounts. Southeast Tech reserves the right to refuse checks from individuals who have written a non-sufficient funds check to the institute.  Cash, checks and credit card payments are accepted in our office, during normal business hours.  Credit card and checking account withdrawals are accepted online, through STInet, using our CASHNet payment gateway.  Credit card payments and checking account withdrawals are not available via phone calls.

See third party authorizations below for information about having balances paid by an approved federal or state agency. Employer reimbursements are covered in the Third Party Account Payments section below. 

Returned Checks

A $30 processing fee will be charged for checks returned by the bank for non-sufficient funds (NSF checks). Any penalties assessed on a student’s returned check will be charged directly to the student’s account. When a check is returned for non-sufficient funds, the Business Office reserves the right to require payment by cash, credit card or certified funds. Unpaid NSF checks are forwarded to a collection agency, of our choosing, if not paid within 30 days.

Payment Plan Information

Payment plans are available by using our online program, Cashnet. You can access the online payment plan through your STInet account.  A $25 fee is assessed each term for payment plan arrangements. A payment plan arrangement will allow students to pay balances over a two or three month period, depending on how early students decide to set up the agreement. Students with a current payment plan, meaning that payments have been received according to the plan agreement, will be allowed to register for future terms.

NOTE: Students failing to make remaining payment plan payments, within the current term, will be administratively withdrawn from future term registrations. Students will be notified in writing of withdrawal due to failure to pay balances due. 

Past Due Accounts

Students are responsible for reviewing account balances and paying balances that are due. It is the student’s responsibility to maintain an accurate billing address with the Student Success Center. (Students may change their address on STInet). Once an account is past due and placed on an “AR Hold”, if an address is incomplete or inaccurate, the student may not receive an account statement and will pay additional late fees and interest if the account is forwarded to collections.

Prompt filing of financial aid documents is the student’s responsibility. Students who do not file promissory notes and qualifying information will not receive financial aid funds in time to pay account balances. Those students will be subject to late fees and interest until loan proceeds are received. Late fees and interest will not be waived for late filings.

Any account that is past due is subject to an “AR Hold” status. AR Holds, placed by the Business Office, will not allow students to receive transcripts, grades or registration material. In addition, an AR Hold will prevent future term registrations and will not allow registration for certain testing center sessions. (CPR tests, NACE/TEAS testing, course related test outs, etc)  Students should not ignore financial responsibility. Students unable to pay balances should discuss the reasons with their Student Success Advisor, the Financial Aid Office or the Business Office.

All past due account balances are subject to late fees, AR Holds and eventually referral to a collection agency of our choosing.  Account balances referred to a collection agency will incur additional fees.

Third Party Account Payments

Organizations that agree to pay any part, or all of a student’s account balance (including bookstore charges), are considered a Third Party payor on the account. The financial obligation to pay an account remains with the student. Students are responsible for filing the proper paperwork with the Business Office to allow Southeast Tech to bill the Third Party payor, on their behalf. Students are also responsible for knowing the terms of their program and any unpaid balance that may remain. The portion of the balance not covered by the Third Party payor is due at the time of the Tuition and Fee Payment due date.

As long as the proper paperwork has been filed, and the student has paid any remaining portion of the balance that is not to be paid by the Third Party payor, no additional late fees or interest will accrue on the account. If the Third Party payor denies payment on the account for any reason, the student is financially responsible for the balance and all fees and interest that accrue.

Employee tuition reimbursement plans, where the employer reimburses the student based upon their account billing or grades are not subject to Third Party payor status. The student will need to make arrangements to pay the entire balance by the due date and seek reimbursement according to their employer’s policy. 

Student Account Holds

Any account that is past due is subject to an “AR Hold” status. AR Holds, placed by the Business Office, will not allow students to receive transcripts, grades or registration material. In addition, an AR Hold will prevent future term registrations and will not allow registration for certain testing center sessions (CPR tests, NACE/TEAS testing, course related test outs, etc.).  Students should not ignore financial responsibility. Students unable to pay balances should discuss the reasons with their Student Success Advisor, the Financial Aid Office or the Business Office.

Administrative Withdrawal From Future Terms

Students who register for future terms are subject to administrative withdrawal from a future term if a student account balance remains past due in the current term. Students will be notified in writing of their withdrawal and will have the ability to re-register once their account balance is paid in full.

Collection Procedures

Students are responsible for all costs necessary in the collection of any amount not paid when due. If students fail to pay account balances on or before the due date, the Business Office will use the following procedure:

Current accounts – time from initial charges added to your account until the fee payment due date for the term. Statements are available via STInet. Account balances that remain after the Tuition and Fee payment due date are considered past due.

30 day accounts – a finance charge and/or a late fee is added and a Business Office hold is placed on your student account.

60 day accounts – additional finance charges and/or late fees are added to student accounts.

After 90 day accounts – final finance charges and/or late fees are added and past due account balances are forwarded to a collection agency.  A letter is sent to the student’s last known address. Any future term registrations are subject to administrative withdrawal.

Student accounts that are greater than 90 days past due will be subject to immediate referral to a collection agency of Southeast Tech’s choice. An additional fee will be assessed by the collection agency and the collection agency has the authority to report past due balances to national credit bureaus. A negative report on a student’s credit rating may result from a past due balance. This negative report may affect the student’s ability to obtain future credit.

Southeast Tech reserves the right to seek a judgment for any past due balance. A judgment is granted in a court of law and will remain a part of the student’s permanent record. Legal judgments may affect the student’s future financial ability to obtain credit.

The following exceptions apply to the forwarding of accounts to collections:

• Accounts that have a repayment agreement will not be forwarded to collections as long as payments are received monthly.
• NSF checks are forwarded to collections if not paid within 30 days.
• At any time, if a billing statement is returned to Southeast Tech without a forwarding address and no additional address is on file, Southeast Tech will forward the student’s past due balance to collections at the earlier of 60 days past due or the receipt of the student’s returned statement from the post office.

It is the student’s responsibility to notify Southeast Tech of a change in address. Student account balances owed are due on the posted due dates. Student accounts are available online via STInet.

Southeast Tech reserves the right to require pre-payment or proof of financial ability to pay all tuition and fees, prior to registration, for student account balances that are past due, account balances that have been written off due to bankruptcy or for students who continually allow their accounts to become past due, resulting in increased collection efforts.

Students who have provided Southeast Tech a written notice of bankruptcy or where Southeast Tech has received a bankruptcy judgment on a student account, will be forwarded to an Administrator for a ruling prior to allowing a future term registration. Students may be subject to pre-payment or financial proof of ability to pay financial obligations prior to registration for a future term.