Item 7.01. Regulation FD.
American Public Education, Inc. (“APEI”) announced
today that its wholly owned subsidiary American Public University System, Inc. (“APUS”), is implementing changes to
its tuition and tuition grants.
APUS is making the following changes for course registrations
made on or after January 1, 2020:
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The tuition for undergraduate level courses will increase by $15 per
credit hour to $285 per credit hour.
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The tuition for master’s level courses will increase by $20
per credit hour to $370 per credit hour.
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The technology fee will increase from $50 to $65 per class.
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These tuition increases will be the first increases at APUS
since July 1, 2015, and are intended to help support increased investments in academic learning and student operations.
To
support APUS’s U.S. active duty military students utilizing Department of Defense tuition assistance programs, APUS will
increase the tuition grant for those undergraduate service members and their spouses and dependents from $20 to $35 per credit
hour to keep the net cost at $250 per credit hour, and increase the tuition grant for those master’s level students from
$25 to $120 to reduce the cost from $325 per credit hour to $250 per credit hour. As a result, both undergraduate and master’s
level course tuition will be $250 per credit hour for U.S. active duty service members, their spouses and dependents. APUS also
intends to extend its book grants to active-duty military students at the master’s level. As a result of the changes
being announced today, U.S. active duty military members will be able to pursue an undergraduate or master’s level program
at APUS without incurring education-related debt or out-of-pocket expense from APUS.
APUS also announced that the existing tuition grant for veterans
will expire at the end of 2019. However, veterans who qualify for 100% of their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits are expected to continue
to have no out-of-pocket expenses. Those veterans who do not qualify for 100% may experience a small increase in out-of-pocket
costs, but because APUS is a “Yellow Ribbon” university, many are expected to have access to additional funding resources.
APEI estimates that the APUS tuition grants for military students will apply to approximately
60% of APUS’s total net course registrations for course registrations made on or after January 1, 2020. However, APEI
is not estimating the expected quantitative impact of any of the changes discussed above, including the increased costs expected
to be incurred due to a larger tuition grant to military students at the master’s level, increased investment in academic
learning and student operations and the extension of the book grant.
Forward Looking Statements
Statements made in this current report regarding American
Public Education, Inc., or its subsidiaries, that are not historical facts are forward-looking statements based on current
expectations, assumptions, estimates and projections about American Public Education, Inc., its subsidiaries and the
industry. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future events or results
to differ materially from such statements. Forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as “expect,”
“intend,” “will,” “continue,” “future” and “should.” These forward-looking
statements include, without limitation, statements regarding the implementation of tuition changes, the changes to tuition and
book grants, the availability of various sources of funding, the expected out-of-pockets costs for students, and the number of
registrations from military students. Actual results could differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking
statements as a result of various factors, including student responses to the tuition and grant changes, any changes in tuition
assistance programs, and the various risks described in the “Risk Factors” section and elsewhere in APEI’s Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2018, Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the period ended June 30, 2019, and
other filings with the SEC. APEI undertakes no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements for any reason, unless
required by law, even if new information becomes available or other events occur in the future.