Tuition Distribution Policy

Office of Summer, Winter & Special Programs Tuition Distribution Policy 

A total of 37.5% of the net tuition income (tuition revenue minus total direct and indirect expenses) generated by summer and winter contracted courses (lecture/lab/discussion) will be made available to UMBC’s Colleges (Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences; Engineering & Information Technology; and Natural & Mathematical Sciences) for distribution to participating academic departments each fiscal year. Academic departments with a positive net income may receive up to 25% of the net income generated. The additional 12.5% net tuition income is designated for the respective Colleges, to be used at the discretion of the Deans.

The Provost’s Office authorizes distribution of these funds to the Colleges and academic departments and will receive 62.5% of the remaining net tuition income.

To be eligible to receive an annual tuition disbursement, an academic department’s combined tuition revenues for all contracted summer and winter courses must exceed the total expenses incurred by the OSWSP on behalf of the department during that fiscal year (a fiscal year includes the summer session and the following calendar year’s winter session).

Following an annual review and approval by the Provost’s Office, the respective Deans will designate the final distribution of funds to the academic departments within their Colleges.  Annual distributions are typically disbursed to the academic departments in the first quarter of the following fiscal year (i.e., the FY23 distribution will occur in early FY24).

Summer/Winter Tuition Distribution Approved Revisions

The following changes to the Tuition Distribution Policy are effective FY23 (Summer Session 2022):

1. Will compensate faculty 10% of their contracted summer/winter course salary when a course is cancelled due to low enrollments ten calendar days or less before the start of the summer or winter session.
2. Revise the faculty salary expense category to include 10% salary for cancelled courses as a calculated course expense.
3. Eliminate the OSWSP indirect cost expense on courses cancelled due to low enrollments.
4. Increase the indirect course expense[1] cost that OSWSP applies to summer/winter contracted courses. The OSWSP indirect expense will be adjusted over a three-year phased-in approach. Starting in FY25, a 2% escalation will be applied each year. [2]

[1] The indirect course expense is charged to  contracted courses to cover Summer/Winter expenses.  Included are Summer/Winter employees (wage/fringe), marketing expenses, scholarships, utilities, and Library support. 

[2] 2% was selected because the 10 year average of personnel cost increases averaged 2%.  Personnel costs are the bulk of the expenses supported by the indirect.