Understanding
Cost of Attendance (COA)

Direct Costs & Indirect Costs

Direct costs include institutional charges that are billed to you by ATSU such as tuition & fees. The Finance Office maintains the current academic year's tuition and fees by program. Actual tuition figures for the upcoming academic year are usually available by April. 

Indirect costs include expenses related to being a student that are not necessarily charged directly by the school.  Indirect costs refer to the expenses associated with being a student, such as books and  supplies, as well as living expenses such as rent, meals, clothing, gas money, health and car insurance.  These expenses are all calculated into your Cost of Attendance (COA). 

Cost of Attendance (COA)

For each academic year, a cost of attendance (COA), is developed to show both the direct and indirect costs.  To view the various COAs for the current academic year, select the school and then your program at the link above.  Note that for residential programs, there are different COAs for each year in school, while online programs are broken down by enrollment status (ex. full time, part time). 

COAs will get you started, but the actual amount you will spend is dependent on your personal needs. Direct costs are easier to identify, but indirect costs can vary based on your personal spending choices.  Creating a financial plan can get you started on the right path! ATSU provides interactive COA worksheets which are downloadable Excel spreadsheets that allow you to plug in the anticipated costs for the academic year, unique to your ATSU graduate school experience. 

Remember, COAs are put together for student expenses. If you have a spouse and/or family, the Department of Education does not authorize student loans to cover their expenses. 

Please be aware that the COAs are extremely important to your financial aid offer, as your total aid cannot exceed the total COA for your year and program.