Section 800: Financial Affairs

Effective:
Revised: October 2016; March 2026
Last Review: March 2026
Next Review: March 2028
Responsible Party: Controller

Policy:

Specific Course Fees are assessed to cover the unique or extraordinary costs associated with the delivery of a specific course.  Appropriate uses of the course fees are limited to the following: 

  • Specialized activities or equipment fees, where payment is made to individuals or entities generally conducting these types of activities (such as downhill skiing, bowling, etc.);
  • Field trips;
  • Pass-through fees (such as Red Cross Certifications, Nursing Liability Insurance, etc.);
  • Laboratory consumables and other class consumables (such as sheet music), excluding computer supplies and paper products;
  • Materials used by students to create a product that becomes the student’s property after used in a specific course.

Procedure:

The following procedures will be followed for obtaining approval for adding and adjusting additional course fees:

  1. Complete a "Course Fee Request" form.
    1. Explain the reason why new or additional fees should be charged and the use of the fee.
    2. Describe the type of expenditures to be made.
    3. Obtain necessary approvals from the Dean and Provost.
  2. Submit the completed form to the Business Services by the end of Fall semester of each even-numbered calendar year. Business Services will then submit the request to MSU-Bozeman for review, and then to Office of the Commissioner of Higher Education in April for submission to the Board of Regents (BOR) at their May meeting for approval.
  3. Beginning with the semester following BOR approval, the approved fees will be assessed to all students enrolling in the course. The fee will not be charged prior to BOR approval.
  4. Fees collected will be deposited in designated accounts. Use of the money in the account will be restricted to the purpose on the "Course Fee Request" form. Requests for expenditure must have the approval of the course instructor of record and the College Dean.
  5. Balances in the accounts will be subjected to annual review.
    1. Negative balances will not be permitted. Collections must be deposited in the account prior to expenditure.
    2. If balances in the account become unjustifiably large, the fee will be reduced or eliminated.


Reference:
Board of Regents Policy 940.12.1