Tuition

Like most independent schools, Tandem Friends School is a non-profit organization that relies on a combination of tuition dollars and annual donations to cover its operating costs. Tuition dollars cover most but not all of our annual expenses, such as: teacher salaries; employee health insurance; sports and performing arts programs; campus maintenance; and the overall cost of running an excellent academic program for adolescents. Funds raised through our Annual Fund help bridge the gap between the amount of tuition dollars the school receives from families each year and the overall cost of operating the school, and are a key support of the school’s need-based financial aid program.

What Does Tuition Cover?
All regular student programming is included in the price of tuition. Our tuition is intended to be all-inclusive; our goal is for families not to encounter unexpected costs over the course of the academic year. Tuition includes the cost of school activities such as after school athletics, performing arts, and clubs, as well as textbooks, PSAT and AP test fees, required class trips including those that may involve plane travel, and much more.

Tuition does not include lunch (many students bring their own and the school offers a buy-in lunch program that some families use), personal school supplies, and SAT test fees. Some elective activities such as school dances or overnight trips for Model UN may involve an additional cost for those students who choose to participate.

All 5th-9th grade students are provided a school-owned Chromebook for use for their schoolwork. Beginning in 10th grade, students may continue to use a school-provided Chromebook, or may choose to BYOD (bring your own device) to enhance their access to more sophisticated school-provided student software subscriptions such as Adobe Creative Suite or Microsoft Excel that are used in many Upper School visual art and science courses.

Additionally, there is a fee associated with our culminating experiential learning program that happens at the end of every school year, Emphasis Week. The cost of this required end-of-year program is not included in tuition; the fees for this week vary depending on the nature of the activity/trip students choose. Choices usually range in cost between $30-$700 for the week.

Constellation Learning Elective Offerings
Through our membership in Constellation Learning, an independent school online consortium, Tandem Friends School Upper School students have access to elective classes not offered at TFS. Some mini-courses have no fee, but semester or year-long classes such as Mandarin, American Sign Language, or AP Psychology involve an additional fee paid by families who opt to enroll their student in a Constellation Learning elective course.

Onsite Tutoring at our Learning Resource Center

The school provides onsite tutoring through Tandem Friends’ Learning Resource Center. Students may meet with tutors during their free periods or before or after school for general help, subject-specific, and/or organizational tutoring at an additional cost.

Learn More About Financial Aid

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International Student Fees

For international students, there is a required $7,500 International Student Fee. This fee covers support for English Language Learners in the humanities and organizational, subject-specific, and college application process-related tutoring in our Learning Resource Center. There is an additional $2,000 fee for International students who require an I-20 certificate.
Tuition Billing

Tandem Friends uses FACTS tuition management software for billing and payment purposes. All families must set up an online FACTS account. FACTS charges an annual enrollment fee of $20/year for the one-payment option and $50/year for the 3-or more payment plan option.

Families have the option to pay the cost for their child(ren)’s tuition in one payment, three payments, or ten payments. The three and ten-payment plans incur an additional finance charge of 1.5% or 3% (respectively) of the total tuition owed.

Tandem Friends School does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, religion, sexual orientation, or national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, financial aid programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

Tandem Friends School complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and will make reasonable accommodations for the known disability of an otherwise qualified student, unless undue hardship on the operation of the business would result.