EXPENSE PLANNING CALCULATOR

Undergraduate First-Year Students

Use this planning calculator to estimate your expenses, resources, and net costs to you and your family. Actual amounts may vary from your projections. The calculator is designed to help you plan for one academic year. We encourage you to use it for that purpose and to project forward and develop a multi-year plan; a plan that will sustain your enrollment through the completion of your degree program. Learn more at Your Plan for Managing BU Expenses.

BU tuition and fees listed below are for 2024/2025, unless otherwise indicated.

Housing and Food (We display the standard rate here, but your actual rate will depend on your room assignment and meal plan selection. More on rates is at https://www.bu.edu/housing/living/rates/2024-25-academic-year-rates/.)

ANNUAL BILLED EXPENSES
Tuition & Fees (annual) $
Medical Insurance (Required unless you have comparable insurance. *)
The amount listed is for 2024/2025.
Orientation Fee – a one-time fee charged to new students only for attending the mandatory University Orientation $
Sports pass fee – this optional fee will appear on your bill but can be waived.
The 2023-2024 amount is not yet available; $140 is most recent.
TOTAL ANNUAL BILLED EXPENSES $
ESTIMATED CREDITS FROM SCHOLARSHIPS, GRANTS, & OTHER
Scholarships and Grants (including federal & state grants) $
Possible external scholarships, Veterans Benefits, Tuition Benefits $
Amount You Plan to Pay (annually) via Monthly Payment Plan $
Planned payments from family savings or other $
TOTAL CREDITS $
ANNUAL BILLED EXPENSES minus ESTIMATED CREDITS $
OTHER EXPENSES (Not billed by BU)
Books & Supplies (estimated) $
If in BU Housing with meal plan: local transportation, personal/misc. expenses
(All first-year students are required to life in BU housing unless approved to commute from parents’ home.)		 $
If commuting from home: transportation, food purchased (at home and on campus), personal/misc. expenses $
TOTAL OTHER EXPENSES $
WORK AND LOAN OPTIONS
Expected earnings from Federal Work-Study award** or other student employment $
MA No Interest Loan (if eligible Massachusetts resident) $
Federal Direct Loan (select “dependent” amount unless parent information was NOT required on your 2024/2025 FAFSA.)
Possible Federal PLUS or Private credit-based loan $
TOTAL WORK AND LOAN OPTIONS TO COVER REMAINING EXPENSES $
*Health insurance is required for all full-time, three-quarter-time, and international students, unless they already have comparable coverage and qualify for a waiver of this requirement.
**Earnings from student employment, including Federal Work-Study, cannot be used as a credit against a balance on your student account. However, they may be an effective source of funding for you to use to pay for other non-billed expenses that arise throughout the year.
*** Annual maximum Direct Loan amounts for dependent students are $5,500 – First-year, $6,500 – Sophomore, $7,500 – Junior, $7,500 – Senior. For independent students the annual maximum limits are $9,500 – First-year, $10,500 – Sophomore, $12,500 – Junior, $12,500 – Senior. However, the amount that will be disbursed to you and is listed in the drop-down above is the annual loan amount minus the federal origination fee.