At Carolina, full-time permanent employees are eligible to waive some education expenses through our two waiver programs. With the Tuition Waiver program, per academic year the cost of tuition can be waived for up to three courses taken through a University of North Carolina System institution. With the Student Fee Waiver program, certain student fees can be waived for employees and their spouses taking classes at UNC-Chapel Hill.
Through the University’s tuition waiver program, eligible employees can have the tuition waived for a course taken at any of the constituent institutions of the University of North Carolina System. Participation in this program is voluntary, and courses may be taken for career development or for personal interest.
Please note that not all classes and programs are eligible for tuition waivers; it is the employee’s responsibility to verify the use of tuition waivers with the program/department.
Employees who are SHRA, EHRA Non-Faculty or Faculty who work in a permanent (non-temporary) position at least 30 hours or more per week are eligible to participate in the UNC Tuition Waiver Program.
To participate, an employee must maintain permanent employment status at 75% time (30 hours per work week) or more for the entire semester during which the course is taken. If an employee leaves during the semester or reduces FTE below 75% time, the employee is responsible for the full cost of the waived class.
Tuition charges will be waived for up to three courses per academic year. The academic year begins with the fall term and ends with the summer sessions.
Tuition may be waived for more than one course in the same academic term. For UNC-Chapel Hill courses, only ONE waiver may be used for a summer session course each academic year; check with the institution offering the classes you are taking for summer session use of tuition waivers.
Tuition waivers may be applied to:
Tuition waived is considered reportable taxable compensation subject to social security, federal and state tax withholding if the value of the benefit exceeds the IRS established limits. Depending upon prevailing tax laws, for each calendar year, the tuition benefit amount over the IRS threshold will be reported as income on the employee’s W-2 form.
To ensure that you are not unnecessarily taxed for your tuition waiver benefit at the nonresident tuition rates, please see the University Registrar’s provision on the Employee Tuition Benefit and submit the Residence Status Supplemental form.
The online tuition waiver application process allows an eligible UNC-Chapel Hill employee the ability to submit the tuition waiver request electronically to their manager for approval. Managers electronically approve the tuition waiver application, which then goes to OHR Benefits for eligibility check and approval of eligibility. The approval by OHR Benefits does not guarantee an accepted waiver as the UNC Cashier’s Office has final approval based on the number of waivers used for the year.
There is no cost to the employee’s department for the waiver use.
Before applying for a tuition waiver, you MUST apply for admission, be accepted to and enroll in a class at the UNC institution offering the course/s. You will use the tuition waiver to “pay” for the course.