Wayne State University

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Policies and Procedures

APPM

3.4.1 Tuition Assistance

DESCRIPTION

Tuition assistance for both credit and non-credit courses is available to full-time salaried employees under the guidelines and terms of the appropriate bargaining agreement or University policy.

POLICY

The employee must successfully complete each course and remain a regular full-time member on the payroll for the entire term in which tuition assistance is provided. If the employee should for any reason not meet these requirements, the employee forfeits the tuition assistance benefit and is required to reimburse the university for the full amount.

  1. Credit Courses: Tuition assistance for credit courses is administered by the Benefits Administration Office. These courses must be taken after normal working hours. If the course is offered only during working hours, special arrangements may be made for the employee to take the course, however, the following conditions must be met:

    1. The employee's supervisor must be able to arrange adequate coverage of the employee's position.

    2. Time taken off for a credit course is normally deducted from employee's vacation bank. Missed hours may be made up, however, working during lunch is not a satisfactory arrangement for making up lost time.

  2. Non-Credit Courses: Tuition assistance for non-credit courses (such as those offered by CLL for which there is a fee) is available only for non-academic employees and is administered by the Training and Development Department. Each course is counted toward the tuition assistance course limits as outlined in the appropriate bargaining agreement or the Personnel Manual for All Non-Represented Personnel. If the course is offered only during working hours, the employee's supervisor must be able to arrange adequate coverage of the employee's position.

NOTE: Non-credit courses must be related to the employee's current job to be covered under the tuition assistance benefit.

Under Federal law, graduate tuition assistance is considered taxable income. Therefore, when an employee possessing an undergraduate degree takes a course which could be taken for graduate credit, the tuition assistance for that course is taxed.

PROCEDURE

Responsibility

Action

Employee

  1. Complete Tuition Assistance Application, form 780, for credit courses, or Employee Request for Non-Credit Tuition Assistance, form 790, for non-credit courses.

  2. Obtain approval:

    1. The signature of the Dean/Director or his/her designee is required on form 780 or form790 to verify full-time employment and/or to authorize taking a course during working hours.

    2. Academic employees are not eligible to receive tuition assistance for non- credit courses, however, a written exception may be obtained from Provosts' Office.

    3. Academic employees taking eight hours or more of credit or non-credit courses during working hours, complete Prior Approval Request, form 799, which requires signatures from the Dean/Director and Provost.

  3. Submit forms to:

    1. Benefits Administration (credit courses) fifteen (15) days prior to registration;

    2. Training and Development (non-credit courses) five (5) days prior to registration.

Benefits Administration (credit courses)

  1. Verify that eligibility requirements are met.

  2. Prepare Tuition Fee Credit Voucher, form 402A.

  3. Prepare Minimum Tuition Deposit Waiver, form 382-B1, and hold for student to pick-up.

  4. Send form 402A to Accounts Receivable.

  5. Enter data into HRS for graduate tuition.

Training and Development Department (non-credit courses)

  1. Verify that all eligibility requirements are met.

  2. Indicate approval by signing form 790.

  3. Forward copy of form 790 to training source, Dean/Director, and employee.

Employee

  1. For credit courses, pick up form 382-B1 from Benefits Administration prior to registration.

  2. For non-credit courses, submit approved form 790 with registration documents. (Form 790 acts as a fee waiver when registering.)

Benefits Administration (credit courses)

  1. Determine if courses were successfully completed and if applicant is still a full- time employee at the end of each term. If one and/or the other above conditions is not met, prepare Accounts Receivable Adjustment Voucher, form 307, to recover tuition assistance payment.

Non-Credit Training Source

  1. Prepare memorandum requesting an Inter- Account Requisition Bill (IRB), form 108A, from Training and Development for course payment. Include list of employees who completed non-credit course, course name and number, and the course fee.

  2. Attach memorandum to canary copies of form 790 and forward to Training and Development Office.

Training and Development Department

(non-credit courses)

  1. Verify training source memorandum to see if courses were successfully completed and verify that applicant is still a full-time employee at the end of the term. If one and/or the other above conditions is not met, notify training source that employee is not eligible to receive tuition assistance.

  2. Forward a completed IRB to Non-Credit Training Source for payment.

Non-Credit Training Source

  1. If employee is ineligible for tuition assistance, forward bill to employee for payment.