Course fee waiver

Human Resources

A course fee waiver provides tuition assistance that waives the tuition for up to six courses each calendar year for employees, spouses, and eligible child(ren) at the University of Delaware. Each waiver will cover up to a 4 credit course and up to two waivers may be used each semester, not to exceed six in the calendar year.

Eligibility	Full and part-time benefit-eligible faculty, staff and retirees who meet University of Delaware age and service.
Who Can Use this Benefit	This program is transferable to a spouse or dependent child Dependent children must be under the age of 26 by the free/drop add day of the semester in which the benefit will be used. If the child is 19 years or older and not a full-time student, a Tax Certification Form will be requested. Learn more. Professional & Continuing Studies Certificates (PCS): All UD employees, spouse and dependents will receive a discount towards PCS noncredit courses. To inquire about the UD employee discount, please contact PCS at continuing-registration@udel.edu. Most discounts are also extended to part time employees. Other College Programs: Some programs and/or courses offered through any of the UD Colleges, may not be approved for Course Fee Waiver. It is recommended to check the program/course description under “Payment Option” to verify if Course Fee Waiver is an approved method of payment. The offering college/department may also be contacted to verify.
Participating Colleges	University of Delaware
Benefit	Two course fee waivers each semester or session. The maximum per calendar year is six requests (three for benefits-eligible part-time employees). Course Fee Waivers may apply to undergraduate or graduate level courses. Learn more.

One course with a unique number up to four credits; or
Employees and their dependents may use Course Fee Waivers for ELI courses with a maximum of two per lifetime.

Acceptance in a particular course without payment of course fees:

Must not displace an advance-registered, paying student; and
Must not cause the need for a second course section or precipitate other action that would add appreciable costs to the University.

Employees do not qualify for fee waivers if they terminate, go on leave without pay, or are placed on layoff before the end of the late registration period.

Release time from work may be granted if:

The absence does not interfere with University duties and the time lost is made up,
The course is not offered in Continuing Education or during non-working hours, and
The course is of direct benefit to the work of the individual. The fact that a course may meet degree requirements may not in itself be sufficient reason for approval.
Employees taking courses during the core business hours (8 a.m.-5 p.m. or during the employee’s regular work schedule, must route the waiver to their supervisor for approval.

The employee will be responsible for the fees noted under the Student Financial Services Mandatory Fee Schedule. This will include winter/summer sessions and fall/spring semesters.

Undergraduate Level: Fee waivers and tuition remission benefits used by a civil union spouse and/or civil union spouse’s dependent(s) will be reported as taxable benefits to the employee if the benefited civil union spouse and/or civil union spouse’s children are not qualified tax dependents by IRS.
Graduate Level: Federal legislation allows eligible employees to receive up to $5,250 in tax free education assistance for graduate level courses taken by the employee. Fee waiver benefits used by a spouse, civil union spouse and/or dependent children for graduate level courses are reported as taxable income to the employee. The tax exemption of $5,250 does not apply to classes taken by the employee’s dependents.
Remember to login to My Finances through the Student Financial Services web site to access account billing and payment activity.

The student must first register for the course before submitting the education web form.

To apply for this benefit, the employee must log into web forms, select BEN Educational Benefits and the button for Course Fee Waiver and submit the form before the end of the late registration and free drop/add period for the semester.

If an employee is requesting release time from work, s/he must complete the Employee section of the form and add his/her supervisor as an approver to the form. Once approved by Human Resources, a copy of the completed web form will be returned electronically to the employee. The web form must be submitted prior to the end of the late registration (free drop/add) period.

What do I need to do if I change my course after I submitted a web form?

If the amount of credits did not change and your course level did not change (i.e. undergrad to undergrad), then you do not need to do anything. The original web form submitted can remain for the new course.
If either the amount of credits changed (i.e. 4 credits to 3 credits) or the course level changed (i.e. undergrad to grad or vice versa), you must send an email to hrhelp@udel.edu indicating the original web form number submitted, the new course, and what has changed.