Navigating Tuition Benefits: A Comprehensive Guide to Duke University's Employee and Family Programs
Duke University offers a variety of tuition assistance programs designed to support employees and their families in pursuing educational goals. These programs range from tuition reimbursement for employees taking Duke courses to tuition grants for the children of eligible employees. This article will explore the different facets of these programs, providing a comprehensive overview of eligibility, benefits, and application processes.
Employee Tuition Assistance: Investing in Duke's Workforce
Duke University demonstrates its commitment to employee development by providing several avenues for staff and faculty to enhance their education. These include a Special Employee Tuition Rate for Duke Classes and the Employee Tuition Assistance Program (ETAP).
Special Employee Tuition Rate for Duke Classes
Duke employees working at least 20 hours per week have the opportunity to take undergraduate courses at a significantly reduced tuition rate through Duke Continuing Studies. The special tuition rate represents a savings of more than 80 percent off regular tuition. For example, employees can take an undergraduate course for academic credit for $975, while the normal rate for the fall semester is $5,287. Furthermore, employees can audit a class for $100 instead of the regular $514 audit fee.
Employees can take a maximum of two courses per semester through this program, or one per summer session. This program is independent of ETAP; however, employees can utilize ETAP to be reimbursed for courses taken for academic credit, provided that they meet the program's eligibility requirements.
Upon completing a for-credit course, employees receive a Duke transcript showing the grade, which they can use to apply for a transfer of credit if they later enroll in a degree program at Duke or another institution.
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It's important to note that the Special Duke Employee Tuition Rate program applies only to undergraduate classes from Trinity College of Arts and Sciences, Duke Marine Lab, and Sanford School of Public Policy. Certain courses and programs, such as music lessons, physical education courses, study abroad, courses at the Pratt School of Engineering, and classes numbered 700 or higher, are not eligible for the special tuition rate.
Employee Tuition Assistance Program (ETAP)
The Employee Tuition Assistance Program (ETAP) provides reimbursement of tuition for a maximum of three classes per semester or quarter (limit nine classes per calendar year) up to $5,250 per calendar year for full-time employees with at least six months of continuous full-time service.
To be eligible for reimbursement, Duke employees and the courses they take must meet specific guidelines. Courses that begin prior to an employee's six-month anniversary are not eligible for reimbursement.
It is important to ensure accuracy when submitting ETAP applications, as reimbursements will only be approved/processed for the same course one time. Employees have three opportunities to review their tuition amount: during the initial application submission, during the request for reimbursement, and in the comments section of the reimbursement request form (Step 2).
Duke University encourages employees to submit the ETAP Application (Step 1) for supervisor approval before their last day of class. The My Forms link is located under the My Info tab in the upper right-hand corner of the webpage under Helpful Links.
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Employees are responsible for following up with their supervisor if they have not yet approved their ETAP Application (Step 1) prior to their last day of class. This ensures that they can submit their ETAP Reimbursement Form (Step 2) within 90 days following successful completion of the course (last day of class). If an employee's supervisor has changed, they should work with their department payroll representative to update their supervisor relationship before starting the ETAP application process.
Auditing Classes
Duke employees and members of the community with appropriate academic backgrounds are eligible to audit certain Duke University courses - primarily undergraduate courses numbered from 001 to 699. Auditors have an official relationship with the University, although they do not receive academic credit. However, auditors are entitled to request and receive a Duke transcript at the end of the academic term.
Permission to audit is granted (or not) by the instructor of the course. An auditor is counted among those registered for the course; therefore, there must be space available in the class in order to register as an auditor.
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Supporting Families: The Children's Tuition Grant Program
Duke University extends its commitment to education to the families of its employees through the Duke Children's Tuition Grant Program. This program provides a grant for undergraduate tuition expenses incurred by children of eligible employees for full-time study at any accredited college or university.
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Benefits under this program provide tuition grants of up to 75% of the weighted average of Duke tuition, after applying a per-semester deductible and other tuition scholarships. If a scholarship is not designated toward tuition and is not greater than room, board, and fees, then the scholarship has no impact on the Children's Tuition Grant. The grant is provided for the pursuit of the child's first Bachelor's degree, and only tuition expenses are eligible for reimbursement.
It is important to note that there is no payable benefit to any of the UNC system schools once the per-semester deductible is satisfied for in-state students. The in-state tuition only (no fees) for North Carolina public colleges and universities is less than the required deductible of the grant per semester.
Legacy Plans
Two earlier plans continue to be available to faculty and senior administrative staff. The first plan, available to those employees hired prior to 1975, provides up to 100% of Duke's tuition and does not limit the number of children eligible. The second plan provides those employees hired between 1975 and 1986 with a benefit of up to $2,500 per child for up to two children with no deductible. The benefits that employees receive are based upon the plan's official plan document.
Additional Resources
Duke University provides several resources to help employees understand and navigate the Children's Tuition Grant Program. These include a Tuition Grant Calculator to estimate the amounts of the tuition grant benefit payment and the remaining student account balance, as well as monthly Children’s Tuition Grant seminars that are now available anytime as a webinar presentation. These resources cover the eligibility requirements, taxability of benefits, and how to apply for benefits.
Expanding Access: Tuition Grants for Carolinas Students
Duke University has taken steps to further expand access to education by providing full tuition grants for undergraduate students from North Carolina and South Carolina whose family incomes total $150,000 or less. These grants went into effect beginning in the fall 2023 semester.
Moreover, Duke students from the Carolinas with family incomes of $65,000 or less also receive financial assistance for housing, meals, and some course materials or other campus expenses, without the need for student loans.
Qualifying first-year students, sophomores, juniors, and seniors from the Carolinas receive financial aid statements by July 1 that reflect the new commitment. Duke students from military families with a legal residence in the Carolinas are eligible even if their families are not stationed there.
Duke expects about 340 students to benefit from the tuition grants in the 2023-24 academic year.
Navigating Healthcare Coverage for Dependents
If an employee's child is attending a college or university outside the state of North Carolina, Duke Options PPO and Duke USA PPO are the only health plans through Duke that will cover dependents outside of North Carolina. If an employee is covering a child under Duke Select or Duke Basic, and that child attends school outside of the Triangle area or outside of NC, they should change their medical plan to one that offers coverage where their child is attending school. Similarly, the Blue Care HMO only has access to providers within North Carolina. Employees have 30 days from the beginning of the semester to change plans or to disenroll members who have moved out of network if their current medical plan does not have a network of providers where their child is attending school.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act and Educational Assistance Plans
While not directly a Duke University policy, the One Big Beautiful Bill Act significantly impacts educational assistance plans nationwide, including how Duke employees might benefit from changes to Internal Revenue Code (IRC) Section 127 Educational Assistance Plans ("127 Plans"). This Act, signed into law, makes permanent the "CARES Act" expansion of IRC Section 127, allowing annual employer-provided tax-free amounts to be used for student loan repayment and tuition assistance.
Prior to the Act, IRC Section 127 provided an annual exclusion of $5,250 for employer-provided educational assistance pursuant to a qualified educational assistance program. The education provided under the program did not need to be work-related or part of a degree program. Qualified educational assistance included the cost of tuition, fees, books, and similar payments. The cost of supplies and certain equipment could also qualify, but only if the employee could not retain them after course completion.
The "CARES Act" temporarily expanded IRC Section 127 through January 1, 2026, allowing employees to exclude from their taxable income payments of principal or interest made by their employer on qualified education loans that employees incurred for their own education. Qualified education loans covered loans for tuition, fees, and room and board expenses incurred by students who were enrolled at least half-time in a degree program at an accredited post-secondary institution. Loans that refinance a qualified education loan were also considered qualified education loans. Employers could make excludable payments to the employee or directly to the lender.
The Act makes two significant changes to Section 127 Plans. The "CARES Act" expansion of IRC Section 127 is now permanent, allowing annual employer-provided tax-free amounts to be used for student loan repayment and tuition assistance.
Employers should conduct a review of their existing Section 127 Plans and prepare any revisions necessary to address the benefits allowed under the Act. Alternatively, employers without a Section 127 Plan may also wish to consider putting such a plan in place.
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