Frequently Asked Questions

Learn more about the new international student services fee.

Effective fall 2019, all new and continuing non-sponsored, degree-seeking international students will be charged an international student services fee of $125 each fall and spring semester that they are enrolled.

This fee will help support a variety of services provided to our international students, including student immigration documents processing, advising, programs to help integrate international students into academic life at Towson University, and funding to comply with federally mandated regulations. The fee will cover the costs of expanding and increasingly complex government regulations and reporting requirements to protect your non-immigrant status.

International Student Fee FAQs

The new fee is $125 each fall and spring semester, effective fall 2019.

  1. The fee applies to all degree-seeking students in F-1 or J-1 visa status.
  2. The fee DOES NOT apply to:
    1. students who are sponsored by their home country government
    2. students at the English Language Center
    3. exchange students

Yes, the fee will be generated each semester when the student enrolls in classes.

The fee is designed to support student services, including, but not limited to:

  1. the purchase of new software which will:
    1. facilitate compliance with federal regulations regarding immigration status
    2. allow students to submit forms and documents online
    3. automate status reminders and recurring communications
  2. additional targeted programming for international students, including:
    1. Education and cultural competency training for units supporting international students
    2. Multilingual resource materials
    3. Academic support programs

No. Although scholarships and Assistantships may cover tuition, they do not cover fees.

No portion of a student鈥檚 tuition goes towards ISSO services or programs. This is the first time that an international student fee has been implemented. This fee is required to ensure that the ISSO continues to provide enhanced services that protects the students鈥 immigration status and serves their support needs.

 

The international student fee will go directly to the ISSO to support international students.

Yes, many other institutions across the country, including some within the University System of Maryland, charge a similar fee.

There is a lot that goes on 鈥渂ehind the scenes鈥 at the ISSO including the processing of initial immigration documents for new students, tracking, reporting, and updating the immigration records for enrollment and progress each semester, employment authorizations, etc. Much of what we do at the ISSO involves processing, reporting, and authorizations.