Do Minnesota Residents Get In-State Tuition in North Dakota? (Undergraduate, 2026)
Yes — Minnesota and North Dakota run Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, so Minnesota residents can pay the North Dakota in-state undergraduate rate of about $11,100 a year instead of the $16,700 non-resident rate at University of North Dakota. Check the current terms before you apply.
- You would pay
- $11,100/yr
- Resident pays
- $11,100/yr
- Non-resident rate
- $16,700/yr
- Saved over 4 yrs
- $22,400
Tuition and mandatory fees only, compiled from published rates and rounded. Excludes housing, books and course differentials. Eligibility is decided by the institution, not by this page.
Open this pair in the checker to switch level, compare other states, or copy a link to the result.
Minnesota to North Dakota is covered by Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity. That agreement is renegotiated between the two states rather than administered by a national body, so its terms move more often than a compact's do — read the current year before you rely on it.
8 other states offer Minnesota residents a reduced undergraduate rate, the lowest being South Dakota at about $10,000. At home, in-state undergraduate tuition is $16,500 at University of Minnesota Twin Cities, so North Dakota works out at $5,400 a year less than staying home.
The failure mode is timing. Awards of this kind are funded annually and allocated in the order applications arrive, so a student admitted in March can find the program closed while a student admitted in November does not.
Every route from Minnesota to North Dakota
| Route | What it gives you | Per year | Saving | Guaranteed? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity | Minnesota maintains standing reciprocity agreements with both Dakotas. Residents of either side pay a reciprocity rate at the other's public institutions, applied for through the Minnesota Office of Higher Education or the partner state's system office. | $11,100 | $5,600 | Yes, if eligible |
| Midwest Student Exchange Program | Participating public institutions charge MSEP students no more than 150% of their in-state resident rate. Participating private institutions instead discount their own published tuition by at least 10%. Each institution chooses whether to take part and which programs it opens. | $16,650 | $50 | Conditional |
Where Minnesota residents pay less
Staying home, a Minnesota resident pays $16,500 a year for in-state undergraduate tuition at University of Minnesota Twin Cities. The cheapest North Dakota option for you is $11,100 at University of North Dakota, which is $5,400 a year less than Minnesota's own in-state rate at University of Minnesota Twin Cities.
Minnesota belongs to Midwest Student Exchange Program (MSEP) at undergraduate level, so 9 of 50 states offer Minnesota undergraduate students a reduced rate, and North Dakota is one of them.
| State | Route | Per year |
|---|---|---|
| Minnesota to South Dakota | Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity · University of South Dakota | $10,000 |
| Minnesota to Iowa | UNI Neighboring State Rate · University of Northern Iowa | $10,201 |
| Minnesota to Wisconsin | Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity · University of Wisconsin-Madison | $11,600 |
| Minnesota to Nebraska | Midwest Student Exchange Program · University of Nebraska-Lincoln | $15,450 |
| Minnesota to Indiana | Midwest Student Exchange Program · Indiana University Bloomington | $18,000 |
Minnesota's neighboring states, compared
What a Minnesota resident pays for undergraduate tuition in each state that borders Minnesota, cheapest first:
- South Dakota$10,000/yr · Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity
- Iowa$10,201/yr · UNI Neighboring State Rate
- North Dakota$11,100/yr · Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity
- Wisconsin$11,600/yr · Minnesota-Wisconsin Tuition Reciprocity
Compare all 50 states from Minnesota in the checker. Each figure is one reference campus per state, not a state average.
North Dakota residency, in brief
North Dakota grants in-state tuition after 12 months of domicile before the term begins (N.D. Admin. Code 15-10-17.1), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile. Moving to North Dakota to enroll does not by itself start the clock.
North Dakota residency requirements in full · how long every state requires
Step by step
- Read the current terms of Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity — bilateral agreements are renegotiated and can narrow to specific campuses or majors between academic years.
- Apply through the channel the agreement specifies; several are administered by the home state's higher-education agency, not by the receiving campus.
- Provide proof of Minnesota residency in the form the agreement requires.
- If you fall outside the agreement's scope, fall back to the residency route: 12 months of North Dakota domicile.
Official links
Related
Asked and answered
›Do Minnesota residents get in-state tuition in North Dakota?
Effectively yes, through Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, but it is not residency. You pay the in-state rate of about $11,100 while remaining a Minnesota resident for every other purpose, and the benefit ends if you leave the approved program.
›How long does it take to get in-state tuition in North Dakota?
North Dakota requires 12 months of domicile before the term begins (N.D. Admin. Code 15-10-17.1), and a financially dependent student takes the parents' domicile.
›How much would undergraduate study in North Dakota actually cost a Minnesota resident?
About $11,100 a year in tuition and mandatory fees under Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, against $16,700 at the published non-resident rate and $11,100 for a North Dakota resident. Over 4 years that is roughly $22,400 saved. Figures are compiled 2025–26 published rates and exclude housing, books and course-specific differentials.
›Is there more than one way to lower the cost?
Yes — 2 routes apply to this pair: Minnesota-Dakotas Tuition Reciprocity, Midwest Student Exchange Program. They are not stackable. You take the one you qualify for, and where more than one applies the campus normally applies whichever produces the lower rate.
›Where can Minnesota residents get reduced undergraduate tuition?
In 9 states at undergraduate level. Outside North Dakota, the lowest are South Dakota ($10,000), Iowa ($10,201), Wisconsin ($11,600). Each figure is one reference campus, and awards are made campus by campus.
›Is studying in North Dakota cheaper than staying in Minnesota?
On tuition, yes. The cheapest North Dakota option for a Minnesota resident is $11,100 a year, which is $5,400 below Minnesota's own in-state rate of $16,500 at University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Housing and travel are not included.
Sources
Every eligibility rule on this page is checked against the operating compact commission or the state's own residency authority. Last verified 2026-09-27.
Tuition figures on this page are compiled 2025–26 published rates (basis: published compiled), rounded to the nearest $100 and refreshed each June. Eligibility rules are checked against the cited compact commission or residency authority.
- North Dakota University System — residency for tuition purposes ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
- University of North Dakota — tuition and fees ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
- University of Minnesota Twin Cities — tuition and fees ↗Accessed 2026-08-07
How this page was made
Compiled and checked by Billy Reiner, editor of In-State Check. Last verified 2026-09-27.
- Compiled from published rate pages
- The in-state and non-resident figures are tuition and mandatory fees for one full-time year, read from University of North Dakota’s own 2025–26 rate page and rounded to the nearest $100. Housing, books, travel and course-specific differentials are not included in them.
- Checked against the administering body
- Compact membership at this level was checked against the commission that runs the program (WICHE, MHEC). The residency test — the durational requirement, the domicile evidence and the dependent-student rule — was checked against North Dakota University System, N.D. Admin. Code 15-10-17.1. Nothing here is taken from another comparison site.
Not advice. In-State Check is independent of every college, compact and state agency named here. Residency classification and award decisions are made by the institution you apply to. Found an error? Send the page URL and the source that contradicts it to [email protected], and the page is corrected and re-dated. Full methodology.