Students planning on taking more than 17 credits hours next semester will also find themselves paying more money — $440 per credit hour.

Kent State’s general tuition and fees increase, approved at the March Board of Trustees meeting, will take effect starting with the 2012-2013 school year. One stipulation of this increase is a $440 charge for each credit hour taken after 17 credit hours.

In other words, a full-time undergraduate student taking between 11 and 17 credit hours can expect to pay $4,836 in regular tuition and fees. After 17 credit hours, one additional three-credit-hour class — which, in other school years, would have cost students no additional fees — would now set regular tuition and fees costs at $6,156.

Emily Vincent, director of University Media Relations, said the decision was made to be fair to students taking less credit hours.

“We had a minimum of 11 credit hours up to infinity at a flat rate,” Vincent said. “We’re doing what our sister universities do and being more equitable for students because a student taking 11 credit hours is paying the amount a student taking 26 credit hours is paying.”

Contact Rex Santus at [email protected].