Locked & Variable Rate Plans

Tuition Rate Opt-in Choices

Incoming Freshman

All incoming freshmen have a choice of opting for one of the following two tuition rate codes:

The Four-Year Locked Rate* is a compounded four-year average, allowing for a per semester fixed rate of required tuition and fees for 12 consecutive full semesters, or four straight years, from the time of first enrollment in an institution of higher education after high school.
The Variable Rate is a tuition plan in which the amount of tuition and required fees increases annually based on factors such as inflationary cost increases, new strategic initiatives, and the overall needs of the university. Historically, the variable rate has increased each academic year, as it is subject to change from year to year during your academic career. To date, even with these increases, the variable rate amount has not surpassed the rate of the tuition locked rate.

Transfers & Re-Admit Students

All transfers and re-admit students have a choice of opting into:

The Current Academic Year's Locked Rate* which, much like the locked rate plan offered to incoming freshmen, is a compounded four-year average allowing for a per semester fixed rate of required tuition and fees for twelve straight full semesters or four straight years, from the time of first enrollment in an institution of higher education after high school.
The First Term of Enrollment Locked Rate corresponds with the calculated remaining years since the first enrolled term after high school (possibly less per hour, but shorter duration before expiration.) In this case, the students must have graduated before the rate expires. Otherwise, they will default to the variable rate.
The Variable Rate is a tuition plan in which the amount of tuition and required fees increases annually based on factors such as inflationary cost increases, new strategic initiatives, and the overall needs of the university. Historically, the variable rate has increased each academic year, as it is subject to change from year to year during your academic career. To date, even with these increases, the variable rate has not surpassed the rate of the tuition locked rate.

*Locked rates are guaranteed for a period of time-based on college and/or major:

All majors in the College of Engineering: 4.5 years from the time freshmen first enter college after high school; Landscape Architecture: 5 years from the time freshmen first enter college after high school; All Other Majors: 4 years from the time freshmen first enter college after high school

Your Tuition Cohort After Four Years: Once you have completed the time in your locked rate cohort, you will automatically be moved to the current year's Variable Rate Cohort.

Non-Resident Students: Because the State of Texas does not fund "non-resident" tuition, mandates issued by the state for the fixed-rate tuition plan do not apply to non-resident students. Therefore, non-resident students will default to the variable-rate plan.

Health Science Center (HSC): Health Science Center programs are upper-division programs with separate budgeted rates of two-year time frames. Upon transfer/entrance to an HSC major, you will be reassigned to their current-year locked-rate cohort for two years or your remaining time if you are originally in a main-campus locked-rate cohort.

Locked Rate and Variable Rate FAQs

2025-2026 and 2026-2027 Tuition Freeze Information

Rate Code Info

Example Tuition Rate Codes

Tuition Rate Code Explanations

The first three characters indicate whether the tuition rate code is locked or variable.
TLR stands for Tuition Locked Rate.
TVR stands for Tuition Variable Rate.
The last four characters of the Locked Rate tuition codes indicate the year the student first entered an institution of higher education after high school.

Example Tuition Rate Codes

First Entered College	Tuition Rate Code	Locked or Variable	Potentially Expires
2020-2021	TLR_2021	Tuition Locked Rate	Summer 2024
2021-2022	TLR_2122	Tuition Locked Rate	Summer 2025
2022-2023	TLR_2223	Tuition Locked Rate	Summer 2026
2023-2024	TLR_2324	Tuition Locked Rate	Summer 2027
2022-2023	TVR_VARI	Tuition Variable Rate	2023-2024 academic year only

Example Cost by Rate Code

Example costs per semester of tuition and fees for a student in the College of Liberal Arts paying in-state tuition and registered for 12 or more hours:

First Entered College	Tuition Rate Code	Locked or Variable	Potentially Expires
2020-2021	TLR_2021	Tuition Locked Rate	$ 5,885.87
2021-2022	TLR_2122	Tuition Locked Rate	$ 6,094.01
2022-2023	TLR_2223	Tuition Locked Rate	$ 6,094.01
2023-2024	TLR_2324	Tuition Locked Rate	$ 6,094.01
	TVR_VARI	Tuition Variable Rate	$ 5,642.63

Changes to Your Rate Code

Incoming Undergraduate Students

Incoming freshmen and transfer/re-admit students may change their selection until the 5th class day of their first term of enrollment. Go to My Dashboard in Howdy, select Overview, then the My Record tab. Then, under Academics, select Registration Readiness. This will lead to a page where you choose Action Items and Tuition Rate Code Selection. That is where the new student can make the change.

Continuing Undergraduate Students

Tuition rate codes cannot be changed after the fifth class day of a student's first term of enrollment.

Howdy Portal

All incoming undergraduate resident students will have to select a tuition rate code in the Howdy Portal before being allowed to register for classes for the first time.

Select Your Rate Code