Cost of Attendance

Budget and Expenses | Student Services Fee

2013-2014 Tuition Rates
For all students who began their studies after May 1, 2011

Tuition and fees are subject to change.

Students who began their studies before May 1, 2011 can find tuition rates on MySouthwestern (log-in required) - under the "What is..." tab on the Financial Aid - Continuing Students page.

All J.D. candidates who began their studies after May 1, 2011 are charged tuition on a flat rate basis, based on their program, for the Fall and Spring terms (this includes the January Intersession) or in the case of SCALE® students, for their periods. During the Summer, these same students are charged on a per unit basis. While tuition for Summer 2014 has not yet been set, it can be assumed that it will be more than the Summer 2013 per unit tuition of $1,506 per unit. Winter Intersession and Summer Abroad costs are determined by the program and charged accordingly.

Click here to jump to details on the Tuition Refund Policy, Residency Units, Flat Rate Tuition Charges and Summer Attendance Requirements.

J.D. Program

SCALE Program

Other Tuition Rates

Tuition Refund Policy

Students who withdraw before the first day of the semester, Summer Session, January Intersession or SCALE period receive a 100% credit of charged tuition. Those students withdrawing on or after the first day of classes will incur a prorated non-refundable tuition charge.* Once 60% of the semester, Summer Session, January Intersession or SCALE period is completed, the student will be charged 100% of tuition. The Hawaii Winter Intersession and Southwestern's Summer Law Programs have their own refund policies, which are printed in the brochure for each program.

*The prorated non-refundable charge is calculated by continuing the number of calendar days starting with the first day of the term and ending with the last date of attendance. That result is divided by the number of calendar days in the term. The resulting percentage is then multiplied by the original tuition charged to determine the prorated non-refundable charge.

Residency Units

In addition to the 87 units necessary to graduate, students must satisfy the residency requirements. All students are required to earn six residency units in order to graduate. They are earned as follows:

• Traditional Day students earn one residency unit for each fall or spring semester completed satisfactorily.
• Traditional Evening and PLEAS students earn 0.75 (three quarters) of a residency unit for each fall or spring semester completed satisfactorily.
• SCALE students earn 0.67 (sixty-seven hundredths) of a residency unit for each term or grading period completed satisfactorily. SCALE students attend nine terms or grading periods during their program.
• Residency units are not earned for any Summer Session, Summer Law Program or Winter Intersession Program.

Flat Rate Tuition Charges

During the Fall and Spring semesters, tuition will be charged to entering traditional and transfer students on a flat rate basis. Students classified as Day Program students must pay the full-time flat rate tuition and students classified as Evening or PLEAS Program students must pay the part-time flat rate tuition. Students must pay the flat rate tuition charge based on their particular classification even though they may be enrolled in fewer than the minimum number of units required.

Summer Attendance Requirements

SCALE students are required to complete at least four units during the summer. Most part-time students will enroll in two Summer Sessions during their time at Southwestern. While the number of summer units taken by part-time students varies - students have at times taken as few as two and as many as five units in Summer Session. While it is common for Traditional Day students to enroll in summer courses, these students are not required to take summer courses to graduate within the three years.