Tuition at the 25 colleges of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG), which includes Southern Crescent Technical College (SCTC) in Griffin, will go up by $10 per credit hour beginning in the spring 2013 semester.

The state board of the TCSG approved the increase last week, according to a press release from SCTC.

As a result, TCSG students will pay $85 per credit hour next year, which translates to $1,275 for a full, 15-hour course load — $150 more than today.

In addition, the state board approved a $50 institutional fee beginning in the spring 2013 semester as well as a $50 fee for online courses starting in the fall 2013 semester. TCSG students, on average, will pay $223 in fees starting in the spring.

Once the expenses for books are added in, typically about $500, the total cost to attend a TCSG college full-time for one semester will be just under $2,000.

“A tuition and fee increase was made necessary by the rising expenses to deliver our programs and (by) lower state appropriations,” said TCSG Commissioner Ron Jackson in the release.