Payment & Finance
How to Make a Payment
Payment By Check: No fees are charged.
Payment with Zelle®: Use this option to send funds electronically from your bank to ours. Our bank charges no fees for Zelle transfers so this will be a no-cost option for you. Many banks use the Zelle® system and most charge no fees for the transfer. Check with your bank if Zelle is offered and what its cost are.
Pay by Credit/Debit Card: A 2.5% transaction fee will be assessed and added to your payment. Loans with 0% interest rates are available. Choose the Pay Online option, enter the sum you wish to finance and see options from PayPal. Loan requests are evaluated and funded exclusively by PayPal, without any CFS input.
What Does Tuition Cover?
For most of our programs, tuition covers the cost of instruction, credit units, room & board, local transportation and pickup at the designated meeting area. Some programs do not include room & board, usually short programs or programs in major cities. For a list of what is covered for each program, scroll to the Student Fees section.
For international programs, the CFS purchase a comprehensive health insurance policy for each student. We are unable to offer health insurance policies for domestic programs.
Tuition does not cover travel to or from the designated meeting point of the program.
Tuition Payment Deadline
The tuition payment deadline for each program is posted at the top of the program’s page.
Balance Post Tuition Deadline: Failure to pay full tuition by the deadline will incur a Late Fee (see below).
Obligation to Pay Full Tuition: If you paid a deposit and did not withdraw before the Tuition Payment Deadline, you are responsible for payment of the full tuition (including Late Fees) regardless of attending the program.
Late Fees
A $100 Late Fee will be assessed for the following events:
Account Balance: Failure to pay the full tuition and having a balance on the student account by the program’s posted deadline. Program Tuition Payment Deadline is posted on the program’s home page (see top of the page).
Late Enrollment: Applications made and/or admitted past the Tuition Payment Deadline will incur the Late Fee.
Payment Plan
Students may avoid paying the Late Fee if they commit to a Payment Plan. Students may decide on the best payment schedule for their needs, as long as full tuition is paid one week prior to the program’s beginning. Carefully read the Payment Plan text before signing as it commits the student to full tuition payment regardless of attendance. Students may also consider a no-interest loan from PayPal – see below.
Financial Aid & Other Loans
0% Interest Loan: We partnered with PayPal to offer students 0% interest rate loans. To apply, go to the top of the page, select Pay Online, then select the Pay Later button. Follow the prompts for the application.
Student Loan from Home Institution: Many institutions allow students to use their Financial Aid packages for Study Away/Study Abroad programs. You may be eligible for additional funds – including loans – through your home institution. Your Study Away/Study Abroad office may be of help and a good source of information.
Stafford Loan: The academic credit units you will earn for your CFS program will likely be accepted at your home institution and applied towards your degree. Therefore, your school should be able to process a Stafford Loan or other federal/state sources of support to assist in your program.
Direct Payment of Federal or State Loans: CFS is unable to accept direct payments from federal or state student loans as we are not a university. Our School of Record – Culver Stockton College – is unable to accept federal or state student loans on our behalf as you are not matriculating in that school.
Personal Loans: CFS field schools are bona fide academic programs that award you with academic credit units. Many banks will allow personal loans to finance such academic activities. We can accept direct payment from banks but note that CFS is NOT an accredited academic institution itself. If your bank demands to transfer funds directly to CFS, make sure that your name and program are included in the transfer memo.
Consortium Agreements
Some Study Away/Study Abroad departments require students to have Consortium Agreement with a provider. Consortium Agreements must originate from the university where the student is matriculating. The student must complete her/his/their part of the agreement before sending the form to us as it usually asked for privileged information (your student ID, major, etc.). Sign and send the form as a PDF document attachment to admissions@fieldsciences.org. We will process and return the signed form within three business days to the email from which the form request originated.
If you and/or your university requires a hard copy of the Consortium Agreement, please make sure to instruct us to do so. Provide the exact name and full address where the document should be sent.
Tax, Refunds & 529 Plans
US Citizens: The Internal Revenue Services (IRS) does not allow non-university academic institutions to issue a 1098-T tax forms. Although students receive academic credit units through our partner universities, our students do not matriculate there and therefore, cannot receive 1098-T forms from Culver Stockton College. Notwithstanding the above, we will be happy to issue a letter stating a student participated in our one or more of our programs and a financial statement showing payment history. Email us at info@fieldsciences.org to request such document.
Canadian Citizens: The CFS is happy to complete Form TL11A for Tuition, Education, and Textbook Amounts Certificate – University Outside Canada. Please send us your form in a PDF format (email to info@fieldsciences.org). We will complete and send the form back, typically within three business days.
All other Nationalities: Please contact us with questions about tax deductions or required tax documentation in your home country. Please note that for legal reasons, we are able to complete only forms written in English.
529 Funds: All our programs are academic programs, accredited through Culver Stockton College. Therefore, all expenses associated with the field school –including tuition, air travel and miscellaneous expenses – are legitimate educational expenses and may be covered by 529 plans. Students receive a letter grade on official transcripts at the end of the program. A copy of the transcripts may be provided to the IRS as proof that the student attended a credit-bearing academic program.
Trip Cancelation Insurance
Trip cancellation insurance is not provided by CFS. Such policies have changed due to Covid 19. If you wish to purchase an insurance policy that covers pandemic contingencies – including the cost of airfare and cost of tuition – explore Cancel for Any Reason (CFAR) plans. Insuremytrip, Travel Guard or SquareMouth are possible websites where you may search for different insurance policies.
Returned Check Fee
If your check payment bounce, a $39 fee will be assessed for your account. This fee will be assessed each time a check has bounced.
Overpayment of Tuition
From time to time, students and/or family members send funds for sums exceeding program tuition. CFS is making all efforts to return those funds. We will send three emails to the student’s email address regarding overpayment of tuition. If we do not receive a reply to these three emails, overpayment funds will be considered forgone and will revert to the general CFS operation budget.