Extra IITM BS Costs Nobody Tells You About, With Amounts

By Editorial TeamLast reviewed 24 Sept 2026

6 min read

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The course fee table is not the only money you spend on IITM BS. You may also pay for skipped terms, repeated courses, make-up exams and grade improvement. BSc and BS graduates pay Rs 7,080 for the alumni card. Some costs have no fixed price at all, such as travel to exam centres, a laptop and, for Electronic Systems (ES), the lab kit. Below is each one with the official document it comes from.

Charges with a fixed amount

Charge	Amount	When you pay it	Source
Qualifier application	Rs 4,000 for general category, less for SC, ST, PwD	Each application; not refunded	DS handbook
Qualifier re-attempt, same term	Rs 2,000, Rs 1,000 or Rs 500 by category	If you miss or fail the first attempt	DS and ES handbooks
RKA (Registration Keep Alive)	Rs 1,000 per term, Rs 1,100 if paid late	Each term you take no courses	DS and ES handbooks
Readmission	Rs 2,500, or Rs 5,800 with unpaid RKA	After being struck off	DS and ES handbooks
Make-up end term exam	Rs 1,000 per foundation course, Rs 2,000 per diploma or degree course	You missed only the end term	DS and ES handbooks, DS academics page
Repeating a failed course	The full course fee again	U, WA or WQ grade	DS and ES handbooks
Improving a passed grade	Twice the course fee	Your choice	DS and ES handbooks, DS FAQ
Dropping a course	Rs 2,000 or Rs 4,000 kept per course	Drop within 4 weeks	DS and ES handbooks
Re-entry exams	Rs 5,000 per exam sitting, 50% off for SC, ST, PwD	Returning after an exit with an original certificate	DS handbook
Alumni card	Rs 6,000 plus GST, Rs 7,080 in all	BSc or BS exit	DS and ES handbooks

A few notes on these:

One section of the ES handbook gives the qualifier fee as Rs 6,000 instead of Rs 4,000. Check the ES application page before you pay.
Repeat and improvement fees follow your own course fee. For a DS student who joined from January 2026, a foundation course is Rs 6,000, so a repeat is Rs 6,000 and an improvement is Rs 12,000.
Skipping three terms in a row gets you struck off, even if you paid RKA each time. See the RKA and readmission fee guide.
The alumni card is mandatory for BSc and BS exits, and your original certificate waits for it. See the alumni card fee explained.

Charges for optional extras

NPTEL credit transfer: Rs 1,000 per credit to the BS programme, plus the exam fee you pay NPTEL.
Campus course credit: Rs 2,500 per BS credit, plus the fee the host institute charges.
Apprenticeship credits: Rs 5,000 per credit at the BS level.

These are all in the guide to other IITM BS fees.

The income check for fee waivers

From the January 2026 term, diploma and degree students who claim an income-based waiver must submit ITR or Form 26AS. The DS and ES fee pages say a nominal fee may be charged for this check. The ES handbook names Rs 1,000, not refunded whatever the result. The DS handbook's copy of the same notice gives no amount. Check your dashboard for what is actually being asked.

Exams outside India

If you write exams at a centre outside India, you pay a facilitation fee on top of course fees:

Exam	Facilitation fee
Quiz 1	Rs 2,000, any number of courses
Quiz 2	Rs 2,000, any number of courses
End term	Rs 2,000 for one course, Rs 4,000 for more than one

With 4 courses, that is Rs 8,000 a term. The handbooks say the fee can vary by country and give Rs 3,000 for Kuwait and Bahrain.

Costs with no fixed price

Travel to exam centres: quizzes and end term exams are in person at centres. The FAQ says you need to travel to the exam centre to take them. Plan for several trips each term.
ES lab visits: in-person lab sessions at IIT Madras are mandatory. The ES FAQ says you arrange your own stay, and IIT Madras does not cover other logistics. The foundation labs are grouped so you visit campus at most twice during the foundation level.
ES lab kit: you buy it separately from IIT Madras. The handbook says its cost will be announced and is not part of the course fees. See the ES lab kit.
Laptop and internet: you need a laptop or desktop with at least 8 GB RAM, and a connection of at least 2 Mbps. The handbook gives no price. See laptop and system requirements.
Books: the FAQ says some courses may recommend reference books that you buy yourself.

A worked example

Say you join DS in January 2026. You fail one foundation course and repeat it (Rs 6,000). Later you miss one diploma end term and take the make-up exam (Rs 2,000). You skip one term and pay RKA (Rs 1,000). At the end you exit with a BS and pay for the alumni card (Rs 7,080). That is Rs 16,080 on top of the fee table, before travel.

What we left out

Students talk about other charges in online groups. We only list charges that appear in the handbooks, the fee pages or the FAQ. For a look at the fee claims that could not be checked, see IITM BS fee complaints explained.

Common questions

Do fee waivers reduce these extra charges?

The qualifier and re-attempt fees already have lower rates for SC, ST and PwD applicants. Apart from those, the handbooks mention a category waiver only for the re-entry exam fee, which is 50% off for SC, ST and PwD students. For the other charges above they do not say.

Can I avoid the alumni card fee?

Not if you exit with a BSc or BS and want your original certificate. Foundation and diploma exits do not get alumni status, so they do not pay it.

How much should I keep aside for the ES lab kit?

No price has been published in the handbook. Wait for the official announcement to registered students, and keep some money aside for it.