Free College Tuition for Senior Citizens

Free College Tuition! Did you know that a senior citizen attending a university, could earn a degree for free if they only take six credit hours per semester and maintain a 2.0 GPA. Some institutes require a registration fee. Continue reading to see if your state has free tuition.

Alabama

Alabama seniors can attend any two-year institution within the state completely free.

Adults 60 and older should contact the financial aid office at any community college for admission and eligibility details.

Alaska

The University of Alaska waives tuition for senior-citizen residents old enough to receive full social-security benefits. Seniors must wait until the first day of classes to enroll to ensure that there’s space remaining; they must also complete a tuition-waiver form.

Additional costs such as student activity, health center and lab fees are not covered; the student must pay them directly.

Arizona

All 10 campuses of Maricopa Community College allow senior citizens to take classes for credit at 50% of the full tuition cost.

Students 65 and older must register between the first and second class sessions of the semester to ensure space is available

Arkansas

Arkansas waives tuition for anyone 60 and over who wants to work toward an undergraduate or graduate degree at state institutions.

Student fees may apply and senior citizens may only register for classes with space available.

California

California State University waives all tuition and dramatically reduces campus fees for residents age 60 or older.

Connecticut

Residents 62 and up may attend state colleges, including community colleges, for free.

At Central Connecticut State University, such as, tuition and university fees are waived for any resident over the age of 62 who applies for full- or part-time admission for a degree-granting program.

Senior students may also take non-credit courses on a space-available basis and have tuition waived.

Louisiana

Students aged 55 and up attending Louisiana state schools receive free tuition and 50% off books and materials at the campus student bookstore.

Maryland

Any student in the University of Maryland System who’s retired and over the age of 60 may have tuition waived, even for degree-granting programs.

Michigan

Seniors 60 and up receive free tuition at Northern Michigan University; at Wayne State University in Detroit, seniors 60 and up receive a 75% discount on tuition, but must pay registration and related fees.

Ohio

Ohio residents at least 60 years old may attend class at any state college for free. Senior-citizen students do not receive credit and can only register on a space-available basis.

South Carolina

Residents 60 and above can attend classes at state schools on a credit or non-credit basis, pending space available, for free. The school must grant admission via its normal procedures.

Technology, lab and other fees are the responsibility of the student.

Tennessee

Tennessee residents 65 and older may enroll in courses for credit at state schools and community colleges.

Schools may charge a service fee of up to $70 per semester that goes toward the keeping of records for those students.

Texas

Texas law allows students 65 and up the opportunity to take six credit hours of undergraduate or graduate courses for free at public universities.

A senior citizen attending the University of Texas at Austin, for example, could earn a degree for free if they only take six credit hours per semester and maintain a 2.0 GPA.

Students must present proof of age to the accounts receivable office to have the exemption applied to their accounts.

Utah

Residents age 62 and up may enroll tuition-free at a state institution; a registration fee is required.

Washington

Institutions in Washington are required to partially or fully waive tuition fees for residents age 60 or older who are enrolled for credit on a space-available basis. Nominal fees may apply to students auditing courses.

Some schools limit senior citizens to a certain number of classes or credits; for example, Washington State University caps the waiver at six credits in each fall and spring semesters. Other schools may only offer tuition-free audit options.

West Virginia

West Virginia allows residents age 65 and older to attend undergraduate and graduate courses on a space-available basis; both for-credit and audit options are available. Schools may still require seniors to pay fees such as parking.

While senior students at West Virginia University applying for credit must use the regular admissions form, those wishing to be non-degree students pay just $5 to apply.

Wyoming

Upon admission to the University of Wyoming, senior citizens 65 and up may attend class on a space-available basis for free.

Community colleges offer a tuition-waiver form seniors can submit; the waivers do not cover student or other fees.