As of the 2026-2027 academic year, St. Olaf College will be charging a $500 activities fee ($250/semester). Please review the information below if you have questions about the new fee.
While the college has always used a portion of tuition dollars to fund various student activities and engagement opportunities, we wanted a more transparent and dynamic method for allocating student tuition dollars toward student organizations and activities.
This approach ensures that the fee adjusts with changes in the size of the student body (i.e., a larger student body results in more funds allocated to students’ activities on campus).
An additional intention with this fee is to break out a component of the comprehensive fee that historically has been included within the larger amount.
Activities fees are common at most colleges and universities.
The activities fee will cover operations and programming within the following areas:
Some students will qualify for a reduced fee based on their family’s financial situation, and it will be reflected on their award letter.
While the college will ultimately determine the fee amount each year, students are encouraged to work with the Student Government Association to propose adjustments to the fee.
Please note that the college may adjust the fee annually to account for inflation or changing student needs.
The Student Government Association (SGA), the Programming Board, and the Lion’s Pause currently (and will continue to) receive a portion of the fee to allocate to the various buckets within their purview, including student organizations, campus programming, and other special initiatives.
The portions of the fee that fall within the operating budgets of the Office of Student Activities (OSA), Residence Life, and Recreation are allocated accordingly by the staff in those offices.
No. Only students who will be on campus are assessed the activities fee for the semester(s) in which they have access to co-curricular activities. The fee will be assessed 50 percent in Fall Semester and 50 percent in Spring Semester, with no charge for January Term.
Students who are student teaching, in nursing clinicals or completing social work practicum who are still in their first four years will be assessed the full fee.
Fifth-year students will be assessed the fee at 50 percent ($250).
Students with less than 1.99 credits will not be assessed the activities fee.
No. There is not an “opt out” for the activities fee because it funds a broad array of co-curricular activities that all students have access to, including but not limited to student organizations, campus events, recreational activities, and hall-based activities.