Worked example · Texas City
Two years at College of the Mainland, then two years at the University of Houston–Clear Lake
This page compares published tuition and fees only. Housing, food, books, parking, course and lab fees, and financial aid are omitted because mixing them in without a family's FAFSA is how directories invent savings. This is a published-price map, not a named state program.
Siblings: Austin ACC → Texas State / UT Austin · Houston HCC → Texas State · Dallas College → UNT Denton · Alamo Colleges → UTSA · TCC → UNT Denton · EPCC → UTEP · SPC → Texas Tech · Del Mar → TAMU-CC · TJC → UT Tyler · AC → WTAMU · STC → UTRGV · TSC → UTRGV · LC → TAMIU · MCC → TAMUCT · LIT → LU · OC → UTPB · VC → TAMUV · TC → TAMUT · Vernon → MSU · Cisco → ASU · Blinn → TAMU · GC → UHCL · CTC → TAMUCT · AC → SFA · LSC → SHSU · ACC → TXST (San Marcos) · NCTC → TWU · Ranger → Tarleton · PJC → ETAMU (Commerce) · San Jacinto → UHCL · TCC → UTA (Arlington) · Dallas College → UT Dallas · Blinn → Prairie View A&M · Alamo → A&M–San Antonio · HCC → UH–Downtown · Dallas College → UNT Dallas · HCC → Texas Southern · SJC → UH · LSC → UH · Collin College → UT Dallas · Kilgore College → UT Tyler · Grayson College → UNT (Denton) · WCJC → UH (Sugar Land) · Navarro College → ETAMU · PJC → ETAMU (Paris) · Lee College → UHCL (Baytown) · Brazosport College → UHCL (Lake Jackson) · Alvin Community College → UHCL.
The question
A Texas City resident wants a public bachelor's. Path A: eight semesters at the University of Houston–Clear Lake, College of Education Resident Undergraduate Total, Academic Year 2026–2027, 15 hours. Path B: complete about 60 transferable semester hours at College of the Mainland at the published In-District rate, including Core Curriculum and — where it exists — a Field of Study, then finish two years at UHCL. This page prints two Path B maps: College of the Mainland In-District (default) and College of the Mainland Out-of-District. Does either map show a lower published tuition-and-fee total?
We pair College of the Mainland with UHCL because COM sits in Texas City and UHCL is the nearest University of Houston campus on that east Harris / Clear Lake corridor. UHCL rates vary by college; this page locks the same College of Education Resident UG Total 15 SCH cell already used on the Galveston, Clear Lake, Baytown, Lake Jackson, and Alvin siblings — $4,562.70 per semester. Galveston College → UHCL is a separate Galveston sibling. Alvin Community College → UHCL is a separate Alvin sibling. Brazosport College → UHCL is a separate Lake Jackson sibling. Lee College → UHCL is a separate Baytown sibling. San Jacinto → UHCL is a separate Clear Lake sibling that defaults to San Jacinto Out-of-District. UHCL sets its own transfer criteria — context and link-out only. Read UHCL's pages directly. PathMax does not guarantee admission: no seat, major, scholarship, timeline, or savings promise.
College of the Mainland's 2026-2027 Tuition & Fees table publishes a Recommended Term row at 15 credit hours. COM states that administrative, internet, hybrid, and standard science-lab fees are eliminated; tuition is residency times credit hours. The default cell is In-District $1,155 / 15 SCH ($77 per SCH). Out-of-District is the alternate map — $1,725 / 15 SCH ($115 per SCH). Confirm your own residency with College of the Mainland. This page does not claim any specific address and does not restate COM district boundaries. Out-of-State / International is a warning row — $2,070 / 15 SCH ($138 per SCH). Texas Direct is a THECB pathway / Texas Direct Transfer Degree (associate) under Texas Education Code §61.834. It does not reserve a UHCL seat. Admission is not guaranteed. Do not merge that language with TEC §51.8035. 2+2 is not a named state program.
Published rates used
Texas City residents who qualify for College of the Mainland In-District rates pay $77 per SCH. Confirm residency with COM. This page does not claim any address qualifies.
| Item | Published figure | How we use it |
|---|---|---|
| College of the Mainland, In-District, 15 credit hours (2026-2027 Tuition & Fees Recommended Term row) | $1,155 per semester | Default cell. Official 15-SCH total at $77 per SCH. 60-hour math is pack arithmetic: $1,155 × 4 = $4,620. This page uses COM's published per-semester 15-hour table, not a COM annual cost-of-attendance line. |
| College of the Mainland, Out-of-District, 15 credit hours (2026-2027) | $1,725 per semester | Alternate map. Official 15-SCH total at $115 per SCH. 60-hour math is pack arithmetic: $1,725 × 4 = $6,900. 2+2 = $6,900 + $18,250.80 = $25,150.80 (gap $11,350.80). |
| College of the Mainland, Out-of-State / International, 15 credit hours (2026-2027) | $2,070 per semester | Warning only. Official 15-SCH total at $138 per SCH. Not the default Texas-resident cell. We do not print a combined non-resident 2+2. |
| University of Houston–Clear Lake, Academic Year 2026–2027 Tuition and Fees Table, College of Education Resident Undergraduate Total (R-UG TOTAL), 15 SCH | $4,562.70 per semester | Default receiving-university cell. Same Education R-UG TOTAL as the Galveston, Clear Lake, Baytown, Lake Jackson, and Alvin siblings. Two years = $4,562.70 × 4 = $18,250.80; eight semesters = $4,562.70 × 8 = $36,501.60. |
| UHCL Academic Year 2026–2027, College of Education NR/F UG TOTAL, 15 SCH | $12,827.70 per semester | Warning only. Not the default Texas-resident cell. We do not print a combined non-resident 2+2. |
Footnote only — not in the sticker: program-specific material fees (for example Cosmetology or Welding) and Inclusive Access e-book fees are added on top per COM. Other UHCL resident 15 SCH totals — College of Science and Engineering / Human Sciences and Humanities $4,637.70; Business $4,757.70; Fixed Rate $4,930.20 — cost more than the Education $4,562.70 cell. Rates change; check College of the Mainland and UHCL pages before enrolling.
Sources retrieved November 10, 2026: College of the Mainland; College of the Mainland; University of Houston–Clear Lake Student Business Services. All sources
College of the Mainland → UHCL versus eight UHCL semesters
Both maps use the same UHCL College of Education Resident $4,562.70 cell. The In-District map is the Texas City default. Confirm residency with College of the Mainland.
| Map | Published tuition & fees |
|---|---|
| In-District: College of the Mainland 60-hour path ($1,155 × 4 = $4,620) + 2 UHCL College of Education Resident years ($4,562.70 × 4 = $18,250.80) | $4,620 + $18,250.80 = $22,870.80 |
| Out-of-District: College of the Mainland 60-hour path ($1,725 × 4 = $6,900) + 2 UHCL years ($18,250.80) | $6,900 + $18,250.80 = $25,150.80 |
| 8 UHCL College of Education Resident semesters ($4,562.70 × 8) | $36,501.60 |
| In-District difference in these published lines | $13,630.80 lower on the 2+2 map — a sticker difference, not a savings guarantee |
| Out-of-District difference in these published lines | $11,350.80 lower on the 2+2 map — a sticker difference, not a savings guarantee |
Sources retrieved November 10, 2026: College of the Mainland; College of the Mainland; University of Houston–Clear Lake Student Business Services. All sources
What has to be true for the sticker gap to be real
- The College of the Mainland rate that actually applies is the one you confirm with COM. In-District 15 hours is $1,155 ($77 per SCH) — the default. Out-of-District 15 hours is $1,725 ($115 per SCH). Out-of-State / International 15 hours is $2,070 ($138 per SCH). We do not claim any specific address.
- UHCL admits you as a transfer student. Texas Direct is a THECB pathway / Texas Direct Transfer Degree (associate) under TEC §61.834. It does not reserve a UHCL seat. Admission is not guaranteed by PathMax — no seat, major, scholarship, timeline, or savings promise. UHCL sets its own transfer admission criteria. Read UHCL's pages directly. Do not merge that credit / associate language with TEC §51.8035.
- The hours apply to the major. Use a completed Field of Study when THECB says it is complete. Computer Science, Biology, English, Architecture, and Engineering are not completed Texas Direct blocks on the THECB table we last fetched — do not treat them as one. See Texas Direct.
- You stay on the UHCL College of Education Resident UG Total 2026–2027 $4,562.70 cell. Other UHCL colleges and Fixed Rate cost more. Program, material, or Inclusive Access e-book fees can raise the line.
- You do not add extra semesters at university rates. Extra semesters, higher-cost UHCL colleges, Fixed Rate, or program/material/e-book fees shrink or erase the sticker gap. Rates change; check the current College of the Mainland and UHCL pages before enrolling.
What we omitted on purpose
This table is sticker tuition and mandatory fees only. Housing, food, books, parking, lab/program/college fees, cost-of-attendance living averages, College Scorecard, Net Price Calculator outputs, aid, earnings, and Promise scholarship details are omitted. This is arithmetic on published price lists, not a quote from a bursar.
Sources retrieved November 10, 2026.
Sources retrieved November 10, 2026: College of the Mainland; College of the Mainland; University of Houston–Clear Lake Student Business Services; Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board; Texas Constitution and Statutes. All sources
Directory pages stay free. Published by Plain Steps. Optional $19 Texas Direct 2+2 worksheet.