Understanding Tuition and Term Fees

An acting course price is never just one number. It may be quoted per month, per term, per course, per year or for the whole program, in the school's home currency, with extra fees outside the headline figure. To compare two options you have to convert them to the same basis, and to understand what you are risking, you have to read what happens if you stop. This guide walks through each part.

The ways prices are quoted

In our records as of 16 October 2026, 152 of 317 programs publish a tuition figure. Those figures use these bases: per year (94), per course (49), whole program (28), per term (28), per month (8), per credit (3), per week (1) and per session (1). Drop-in or per-session pricing is rare in the published data, so if you want to try a class once, ask the provider directly.

Currencies

Prices are recorded in the original currency and are never converted. In our records of tuition figures, 90 are in US dollars, 62 in pounds sterling, 16 in euros, 9 each in Australian dollars, Canadian dollars and Indian rupees, 8 in Japanese yen, 6 in Turkish lira and 3 in New Zealand dollars. Exchange rates move, and a school may bill international students in a different amount or a different currency from domestic students. Some pages list separate rates for domestic and international applicants or for in-state and out-of-state students. When you compare, use the figure for your own category, and confirm the currency you will actually be charged in.

What is not in the headline

Look for:

• Application, registration and audition fees. The CNSAD entrance exam page lists a €79 registration fee, paid online, with an exemption for holders of a particular scholarship, and says it is never refundable. Fees of this kind are separate from tuition.
• Administration or processing charges. Young Actors Theatre Islington lists a card-processing charge on all payments. Terry Knickerbocker Studio's online Meisner intensive lists an administration fee on top of tuition.
• Materials, books and equipment. The Beverly Hills Playhouse page says its intermediate and advanced startup fees include books and a registration fee.
• Costs of living and travel, for anything that is not local.
• Pre-enrollment costs, such as audition travel. In our records, 18 programs list an audition fee and 36 list an application fee.

A figure is only tuition if the source says it is a teaching fee. We record other charges under their own labels.

Deposits

A deposit holds a place and is usually credited to the first bill. In our records 11 program entries list a deposit. Ask: is it credited against tuition, when is it due, is it refundable and under what conditions? A deposit that is described as non-refundable is a cost, not a hold.

Refunds and missed classes

Refund wording varies a great deal, and it is the part of a price page most likely to be buried. Some real examples:

• Beverly Hills Playhouse states that all tuition payments, including the startup fee, are non-refundable.
• Playhouse West states that no refunds will be issued and that there are no make-up classes, and that missed classes count as missed.
• The Denver Center's page for child and teen classes sets a sliding refund: 90 percent up to three weeks before the start date, 75 percent from three weeks to one week before, and none within one week. It adds that absences are not refunded pro rata.
• City Lit says it cannot refund fees if the tutor changes, and refers to a separate help article.
• CNSAD's entrance exam registration fee is never refundable.

In our records, 33 cost entries publish refund terms. Where terms are absent from the price page, ask for them in writing before you pay.

A comparison method

1. Convert each option to total cost for the whole course, including every fee, in its own currency.
2. Convert to cost per contact hour if hours are stated. A cheaper course with half the hours is not cheaper.
3. List what happens if you leave: notice, refund, make-up classes, credit.
4. Check who bears the risk if the school cancels or changes tutor.
5. Decide whether the payment schedule suits you: all upfront, instalments or monthly.

Funding

Scholarships, bursaries and concessions exist at many schools. Pages we read mention senior and concession rates, concession discounts and fee waivers. Their rules vary, and some require proof. Ask early. Do not assume that a concession applies to deposits or registration fees.

Nothing in a price page guarantees employment, and a higher price does not indicate better training. For related decisions, see Choosing Beginner Classes, Studying Acting Abroad and Questions to Ask Before Enrolling. Our methodology page explains how we record prices.