Fall 2020 Spring 2021 Total

Direct Costs
Tuition 29,802 29,802 59,604
Medical Insurance (may be waived by domestic students) 1,400 2,276 3,676
Health Service Fee 610 610 1,220
SIPA IT/AV Fee 110 180 290
University Services and Support Fee 261 531 792
Student Activity Fee 0 60 60
Total Direct Costs (charged by Columbia University) 32,183 33,459 65,642


ESTIMATED Indirect Costs

    
Room/Board 7,976 10,235 18,211
Books 500 500 1,000
Personal Expenses 1,792 2,241 4,033
Transportation 508 635 1,143
Total Estimated Indirect Costs 10,776 13,611 24,387


TOTAL ESTIMATED COST

 42,959 47,070 90,029

Additional Notes

  • Not all tuition and fees have been approved yet by the Columbia University Board of Trustees.  The figures above for Direct Costs are estimates as of August 25, 2020.
  • All students' first semester of enrollment at Columbia University will be charged a $105 Document Fee (formerly known as Transcript Fee).
  • International students must pay:
    • medical insurance
    • $110 per semester International Students Fee
    • $103 I-20 fee only during their first semester of enrollment
  • New students in the MPA-DP program are charged an additional $1,000 in their first term of enrollment, which contributes to the cost of the 12 week summer professional field placement, one week Getting Started Program, and 3 day MPA-DP retreat.
  • Total Estimated Cost of Attendance includes both direct and indirect costs.
    • Direct costs are those charged by Columbia University. The tuition and fees indicated above are for the stated year only. All tuition and fees assume full-time attendance; your costs may vary if you do not enroll full-time.  Additional tuition charges for enrollment in excess of 18 credits in a semester are $2,490 per credit.  For information on billing and payments, please visit the University's Student Financial Services website.
    • Indirect costs are not billed by Columbia and reflect estimated living and miscellaneous expenses incurred by students for the 9-month academic year (September through May only); yours may vary.
    • Figures above do not include the costs of relocating to New York, if applicable.

 

For Fall 2020, SIPA will reduce the IT/AV fee by $70, just as we did last semester.  We are reducing this fee even though AV/IT-related expenses have increased in conjunction with the continuation of online instruction and programming.   With respect to the student activity fee, SIPA will not charge the $60 fee this semester.  Once again, SIPASA was instrumental in enabling this fee reduction.