Prorating tuition for partial months
Found in: Fees Rates & Cost, Studio Policies
Megan F., Nebraska
I’m a new teacher in the process of getting some groups started. I have two beginning in the middle of May, so I’ll be prorating their tuition due this month. The first group will have three lessons in May, as opposed to the four they would have had if they had started at the beginning of the month. With that group, I told them the amount due would be 3/4 of my normal monthly tuition.
Now, with the second group I’m running into a dilemma. They’ll also have three lessons this month. However, if they had started at the beginning of the month, they would have had five lessons because of the way the dates fall in May. So if I use the same logic as I did with the other group, the second group’s average lesson cost for the month would be much lower and they’d be paying less for the three lessons, which makes no sense.
How do you teachers who charge a monthly tuition handle this? Do you base your first month’s prorated tuition on four weeks regardless of how many lessons they would have had if starting at the beginning of the month? Or do you average the cost of lessons over the course of a year and use that amount when prorating?
Leeanne I., Australia
I invoice monthly on the anniversary of the first lesson, not at the beginning of the month. So, if a student or group’s first lesson was on March 20th, their next monthly payment would be due on April 20th. I have put task reminders in Outlook a week before the due date to remind me to email the invoice for each student/group.
Laurie Richards, Nebraska
I would just prorate as if there were 4 weeks that month since they are receiving 3 lessons.
Gabrielle K., Iowa
I averaged all the weeks of the year minus a couple weeks to come up with a reasonable monthly fee that doesn’t change. Gym subscriptions and colleges don’t change their tuition so I don’t see why we have to either. I also put that in the policy and since I’ve explained it like that, no one has questioned it. If there was only one or two weeks left in the month, I would just put them in the next month.
Mark M., New York
I try to avoid partial-month situations whenever possible. But I do calculate an effective per-lesson rate averaged over the course of the year, and then I deduct that for each lesson missed in a partial month. This way, they don’t pay for what they’re not getting, it’s fair for everyone not matter how many weeks per month or lessons being missed, and you’re covered for the amount that every month contributes to cover those months that have that fifth week in them. The only time this doesn’t work is if you try to deduct four lessons from a five week month, which is very rare anyway, and can be handled by simply charging the single per-lesson rate for that one lesson.
Patti P., Hawaii
I prorate my fees, spread evenly over 12 months. It’s like an installment plan for tuition, similar to enrolling in a private school. I do allow partial payments during the first month only, and I carefully explain this. My tuition includes much more than just lesson time (training, lesson prep, recitals, etc.) so how many lessons each month is really irrelevant. Most people understand; for some people it takes repeated explaining that I don’t charge on a per-lesson basis. This simplifies it for all of us – every month all year piano tuition is exactly the same amount. They can budget and so can I.