The 2009 Legislature enacted a student charge for excess hours. For students enrolling in a State University for the first time in or after the fall 2009 semester, a tuition rate surcharge will be applied for credit hours that exceed 120% of the completion requirements for the chosen degree program. The surcharge will apply to all “excess hours” and is determined by your start date. For a program that requires 120 credit hours to graduate, all hours that exceed 144 would count as excess (120% of 120 semester hours).
 
If you entered college as an undergraduate between and including Fall 2009 and Summer 2011, you are subject to a threshold percentage of 120%, and a surcharge of 50% of the tuition rate.

In 2011 the Legislature modified the statute and changed the threshold to 115% and a surcharge of 100% of the tuition rate for students entering in Fall 2011 and later.  For a program that requires 120 credit hours to graduate, all hours that exceed 138 (115% of 120) would count as excess.

All credit hours taken while you are in college, including courses that you fail, courses that you drop after the Drop/Add period, courses that you repeat, withdrawals and transfer credit earned at another institution and subsequently applied to your degree program here at FGCU.

The law does allow for exceptions to the excess hour surcharge.  For example, the courses taken under the following circumstances would not count as excess hours:

• Articulated accelerated credit (e.g. Advance Placement, International Baccalaureate, CLEP, Dual Enrollment, etc.)
• Internship credit
• Certification/Recertification and certificate program credits
• Credits withdrawn due to medical or personal hardship
• Credits taken by active-duty military personnel
• Credits required for a dual major
• Remedial and English as a Second Language (ESOL) credit
• Military Science credits in Reserve Officers Training Corps (ROTC) programs

All students should make every effort to enroll in and complete only those courses that are required for their degree program. Repeating courses, changing majors and adding minors that are not required as part of a major may result in excess hours. Student should regularly review their degree audit and consult with an academic advisor to ensure that they are not enrolling in excess hours.