Application fees
- For regular entry to the Gymnasium or the Fachmittelschule at the Neue Kantonsschule Aarau (NKSA) there is no routine one‑time application charge for pupils resident in the Canton of Aargau; admissions for these programmes are handled via the cantonal registration process.
- Specific adult/continuing‑education offerings tied to the canton (for example: the Aargauische Maturitätsschule für Erwachsene (AME) and certain Passerelle or preparatory courses) carry a payable application/enrolment charge. Where applied, that enrolment charge is CHF 200 and is credited against the first semester's course fee. Other adult‑programme admission items (for example, certain Berufsmaturität admission steps) may carry separate fixed fees (examples in cantonal rules include CHF 300 for certain BM admission procedures).
Tuition / Schulgeld (by programme, with per‑year and per‑semester figures where applicable)
- For pupils who are resident in the Canton of Aargau: attendance at public cantonal schools (including the NKSA) is provided without a tuition charge for the instruction itself; public law provides that instruction at cantonal public schools for canton residents is unentgeltlich (no tuition). Parents should expect that the standard course of instruction is not invoiced as a tuition charge for in‑cantonal residents.
- For pupils whose place of residence is outside the Canton of Aargau (i.e., ausserkantonal students) the payable Schulgeld is set under the regional inter‑cantonal agreement (the RSA) and is billed according to the RSA tariff applicable to the specific programme. The RSA gives amounts both per school year and per semester; two NKSA examples from the RSA tariff schedule are:
- Standard Maturität / regular Gymnasium pathways at NKSA: CHF 20,500 per school year (CHF 10,250 per semester).
- Immersion (double‑diploma) programme at NKSA (Swiss Maturität with International Baccalaureate Diploma): CHF 22,500 per school year (CHF 11,250 per semester).
- For adult/continuing programmes administered under AME / Passerelle rules: course fees are generally invoiced per semester; a standard example in the cantonal fee rules is CHF 1,000 per semester for those AME study‑courses (with the CHF 200 enrolment charge credited to the first semester).
Billing schedule and payment terms
- Where RSA Schulgeld applies (out‑of‑canton pupils), tariffs are stated both on an annual and a per‑semester basis; payment and invoicing are governed by the RSA arrangements between the sending canton/authority and the receiving canton/school (the RSA schedule lists per‑year and per‑semester amounts).
- For cantonal adult education courses (AME / Passerelle) billing is on a semester basis; the enrolment fee (when charged) is credited to the first semester's invoice. The cantonal fee rules specify refund conditions for that enrolment fee (see refund item below).
- For pupils in RSA situations, invoicing and payment are usually arranged between the responsible authorities (sending canton/authority) and the receiving school; for other fees charged directly to families (exam/assessment fees, course‑specific charges, study materials, trips), the NKSA/cantonal administration will issue invoices to the legal guardians or the student as appropriate.
Boarding / accommodation fees
- The Neue Kantonsschule Aarau is operated as a day school and does not operate boarding houses as part of its standard provision; there are no routine boarding fees associated with the NKSA day programmes.
Other costs and typical additional charges
- Examination / external assessment fees: pupils taking externally assessed programmes (for example International Baccalaureate assessments) are subject to the International Baccalaureate Organization's assessment charges; those assessment invoices are issued and administered through the IB system and are normally handled through the school (students/families may be asked to cover the IB assessment charges if the school does not absorb them). Expect IB assessment charges to be invoiced separately from cantonal tuition/Schulgeld.
- Learning materials and course‑specific contributions: at the Sekundarstufe II level the canton and schools may require cost contributions for certain learning materials, consumables, specialist course materials and optional activities outside regular instruction (for example extended trips, specialist art or design materials, or course‑specific supplies). The cantonal fee rules explicitly allow such cost contributions for items outside the scope of free instruction.
- Instrumental or extra‑curricular lessons and special courses: where the school or the linked music schools provide optional instrumental instruction or specialist extracurricular tuition, a separate fee may be charged (the cantonal regulations permit cost contributions for non‑compulsory offers such as instrumental tuition).
- Materials for vocational or practical subjects: in some public vocational or creative preparatory offerings the administration may require a deposit or a cost‑advance for materials; the cantonal fee rules contain examples of fixed deposits or cost‑advances for particular preparatory courses.
Refunds and cancellation rules (examples from cantonal rules)
- Where an enrolment/enrolment fee is charged for specified adult courses, that enrolment fee (CHF 200 in the cited cantonal provisions) is refunded if the enrolment is withdrawn more than two months before course start or in specified cases such as not passing a linked admission examination. The cantonal fee rules set these refund conditions explicitly for those adult/preparatory programmes.
- For Schulgeld paid under the RSA (out‑of‑canton situations), billing and any refund arrangements are handled under the RSA / inter‑cantonal procedures applicable to the sending and receiving authorities. The RSA tariff schedule shows the tariff bases (per year / per semester) used for inter‑cantonal payment calculations.
Fee payment options (how fees are normally settled)
- Inter‑cantonal Schulgeld (RSA) is settled between public authorities under the RSA procedures and the tariffs shown in the RSA schedule; families are ordinarily not directly invoiced for RSA inter‑cantonal payments where the sending canton covers costs under RSA arrangements.
- For fees invoiced directly to families (semester‑fees for adult courses, course‑specific charges, IB assessment charges, materials, trips), the school or the cantonal administration issues invoices. Schools and the IB typically provide standard payment channels (in practice these are settled by bank transfer / e‑banking or by the payment methods specified on the invoice); IB invoices and school invoices include the IB / school payment instructions for the payer. Expect bank transfer / e‑banking to be the normal practical payment method for canton/school invoices and for IB assessment invoices.
If you need the figures formatted or transcribed into your database fields exactly as shown (currency CHF and the per‑year and per‑semester values), use the RSA tariff entries above for non‑resident Schulgeld and the cantonal fee rules above for the adult/semester charges and enrolment rules.
