Carnegie Mellon University

Tuition Adjustment Policy & Schedules

This policy applies to leaves of absences and withdrawals from the university by all students (graduate, undergraduate, non-degree) for any semester. This policy does not apply to Tepper graduate students

Tuition Adjustment

If a student takes a leave of absence or withdraws within the first ten class days (fifteen calendar days) of a semester, tuition and fees are fully refundable, as indicated on the tuition adjustment schedule. Students who take a leave of absence or withdraw from the university before completing 60% of the semester will be assessed tuition based on the number of days completed within the semester. This includes calendar days, class and non-class days, from the first day of classes to the last day of final exams. Breaks that last five days or longer, including the preceding and subsequent weekends, are not counted. Thanksgiving and Spring Break are not counted. There is no tuition adjustment after 60% of the semester is completed.


Official Date of Leave of Absence/Withdrawal

For students who notify the university of their intent to take a leave of absence or withdraw, the official date is the earliest of the:

  • Date the student began the withdrawal or leave of absence process;
  • Date the student notified his or her home department;
  • Date the student notified the associate dean of his or her college; or
  • Date the student notified the dean of students.

For students who do not notify the university of their intent to take a leave of absence or withdraw, the official date is:

  • The midpoint of the semester;
  • The last date the student attended an academic-related activity, such as an exam, tutorial or study group, or the last day a student turned in a class assignment. 

Tuition Adjustment Appeals

Leaves & Withdrawals

Students may appeal to have tuition adjustments for their leave of absence or withdrawal from the university if they feel that they have extenuating circumstances. These appeals will be reviewed in the context of the university's tuition adjustment policy. These appeals must be made in writing to the University Registrar using the Tuition Appeal Adjustment (pdf) form. The form and any supporting documentation should be submitted via email to uro-appeals@andrew.cmu.edu.

Course Drops

Students may appeal to have tuition adjustments for courses that they have dropped after the course drop deadlines due to extenuating circumstances. These appeals do not follow the leave of absence and withdrawal tuition adjustment schedule and must be made in writing to the University Registrar using the Tuition Appeal Adjustment (pdf) form. The form and any supporting documentation should be submitted via email to uro-appeals@andrew.cmu.edu.

Tuition Refund Policy Exceptions:

  • Tepper Graduate Student Tuition Refund Policy: Tepper School graduate tuition is refunded 100% to students who withdraw by the course drop deadline. After the course drop deadline, tuition is non-refundable and remains charged at 100%. This tuition refund policy is separate from the calculation used to cancel and return federal loan funds when students withdraw. See Enrollment: Impact on Loans (pdf).
  • This refund policy also applies to graduate and undergraduate students who are enrolled in distance education programs outside their state of residence, except in cases where such a student would be disadvantaged by CMU’s tuition refund policy.

Distance Education Refund Policy

Some states’ tuition refund policies are stricter than Carnegie Mellon’s tuition refund policy. In such cases for students enrolled in distance education programs, the university will act in the best interest of the student and follow Carnegie Mellon’s tuition refund policy.