nishtdayngesheft: My seminary’s payment plan was staggered so that 95% of the tuition was paid before seminary started. And they are considered very liberal when it comes to tuition. I don’t know what other seminaries do, but it is entirely conceivable that there are some that make you pay in full up-front.
Also, the payment contract that my parents signed clearly stated which part of the total was a non-refundable deposit (it was credited toward the tuition). So even given your (extremely selective) tendency to judge in the most favorable light possible, such a lack of transparency on the part of the seminary administration can be nothing other than unacceptably negligent.