UAH block tuition will create a financial benefit for students

The Board of Trustees of The University of Alabama gave approval today of the second year of a block tuition program for The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) that will be financially beneficial to students.

Block tuition will allow UAH students to take more academic credit hours at no additional cost, thus saving students money on tuition, and also encouraging these students to graduate more timely, which will also result in financial savings.

"We put in place a transition to a block tuition structure a year ago that will make it financially advantageous for our students to take an increased number of classes each semester," said UAH President Robert Altenkirch. "The goal is for them to graduate more timely and that will result in lower overall costs of earning a degree."

The block tuition is being phased in during a three-year period. During this period, per credit hour tuition charge for students taking between 12 and 18 hours will gradually decrease until it reaches zero in year three of the transition.

In-state students taking 12 hours or less will see a slight tuition increase of 3 to 4 percent. However, those same students taking 15 to 18 hours would see decreases of as much as 4 percent in their tuition bill.

The savings are realized because prior to 2013, UAH charged tuition based on each credit hour taken by a student.

This tuition structure is similar to many major universities, including Alabama and Auburn.