Save Money on Minnesota Tuition

Updated: Feb 8, 2023

Get Minnesota In-State Tuition

One of the more affordable ways to get a bachelor’s degree typically is to attend an in-State public school. Here is a website with information about how to qualify as a Minnesota resident: https://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=194. While in-State tuition for a public institution is not financial aid, it is subsidized. The cost of attending an in-State public institution should be compared to the cost of other institutions after financial aid awards are offered. Families often do not pay the sticker price. Also, please consider graduation rates of different institutions. Some private colleges have four-graduation rates that are considerably higher than those of public universities. Families may be able to save money by paying more annually if the likelihood of graduating on time is considerably higher.

Minnesota Tuition Reciprocity

Minnesota has tuition reciprocity agreements with: Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Canada’s Manitoba province. For information on how to apply for reciprocity, please see: http://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=120.

Midwest Student Exchange Program

The Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) offers discounted tuition to students in certain Midwest States. While MSEP is less generous than tuition reciprocity, under it students pay up to 150 percent of the resident tuition rate (which is still below the non-resident rate) at participating public schools. In addition, students may receive a 10 percent reduction in tuition at participating private schools. The States participating in MSEP (that do not have tuition reciprocity agreements with Minnesota) include: Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska, and Ohio. For further information, please see: https://msep.mhec.org.

Minnesota Need-Based Grants

The Minnesota State Grant provides need-based financial aid. Information about the program can be found at: https://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=138. Students complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid or FAFSA ® to apply for a grant under this program. The program is for Minnesota residents to use to attend colleges in Minnesota. Students may not use the grants for more than four years of college, and they cannot already have a bachelor’s degree. When calculating the size of the State grant, students are expected to contribute half of the cost of attending the college. The grants may be as large as about $8,000 for a public university and $12,000 for a private university.

Other Minnesota Grants and Scholarships

Other Minnesota programs are more narrowly targeted to certain groups of students, which are included on these two websites:

https://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=1296

https://www.ohe.state.mn.us/mPg.cfm?pageID=1508

These programs target assistance to students who: need to pay for child care, are preparing to become teachers, attend Minnesota State Universities, are “dreamers,” are war orphans, are American Indians, are dependents of veterans, are children of fallen public safety officers, have been in foster care, are public-sector attorneys, or have disabilities.

Minnesota Student Loans

Minnesota has its own student loan program. For further details, please see: http://www.selfloan.state.mn.us/. Students apply for the programs using the FAFSA ®, and they are required to have a cosigner on the loan.

Minnesota Merit-Based Financial Aid

Minnesota does not have the large merit-based financial aid programs one finds in Georgia (Hope Scholarships) or Florida (Bright Futures). Individual institutions, however, distribute merit-based aid. Typically, the application for admission to the institution functions as the application for the scholarship.