<p>I was just going over my D’s account at Brandeis to see how much of a check would need to be sent in for the fall semester payment in 4 weeks.</p>
<p>I was a bit surprised to see that the total was higher than I thought it would be by about $500. At first, I thought that her acceptance deposit had not been credited to her account yet. I checked and saw that it had been, however.</p>
<p>So, off to the itemized list we went. There, snugged in at the bottom, is a $500 “University Fee”. You can’t find any reference to this fee anywhere on their site. It’s not on the cost of attendance worksheet (which does list one-time-only fees for seniors and freshman). But, it stands alone on the bill for a first-time student.</p>
<p>So, am I correct that this is a one-time “pay the $500 because we say so” fee, or am I missing something ?</p>
<p>And, a year later, answering my own question.</p>
<p>The $500 deposit is applied towards your first year bill. There is also a $500 “University Fee” that’s essentially a school fines / room damage deposit. No room damage, no hit, and the $500 carries over to the next year. Make it through 4 years, and you get it back.</p>
<p>So, end of the day, the deposit is just that - a deposit applied against your bill. Last year, the first year of the new fee, there wasn’t much documentation on the reason for the fee, so it looked like a one shot. It’s not.</p>