Navigating the Florida State Employee Tuition Waiver: A Comprehensive Guide
The State of Florida offers a valuable benefit to its employees: a tuition waiver that allows them to pursue higher education at a significantly reduced cost. This article provides a comprehensive overview of the Florida State Employee Tuition Waiver, outlining eligibility requirements, covered fees, application procedures, and important considerations for prospective students.
Who is Eligible?
The State Employee Tuition Waiver is available to a specific group of individuals. To participate, state employees must be admitted to the University. Employees of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state government are eligible for this waiver. For purposes of this procedure state employees will be defined as full-time employees of the executive, legislative, and judicial branches of state government. This explicitly excludes individuals employed by the state university system, the community college system, or local school districts. Persons employed by a state university are not eligible for a State Employee Tuition Waiver. Furthermore, employment verification must be provided each term to maintain eligibility. All full-time permanent employees of a state agency, as certified by your human resources department, are eligible.
What Does the Waiver Cover?
The tuition waiver covers tuition and certain fees, allowing state employees to enroll for up to six credit hours of courses per term without directly paying these costs. The State Employee Tuition Waiver covers up to 6 credit hours per semester (Fall, Spring, and Summer). Fees eligible for waiver include tuition, financial aid fee, student activity fee, and capital improvement fee (equates to $102.00 per credit hour for the 2022-23 school year). At Tallahassee State College, this waiver covers tuition and all additional in-state fees, including lab, material, and supply fees, and auxiliary fees, at Tallahassee State College and applies to credit hour courses, including college prep, and clock hour PSAV courses.
However, it's crucial to understand that the waiver does not cover all fees. There are some fees not covered by the waiver. For example, laboratory fees may not be included. Auxiliary Fees for C.P.D. are not covered. Students must pay any applicable special fees. It's the student's responsibility to clarify which fees are waived and which are not before registering for courses.
Key Requirements and Procedures
Several key requirements and procedures must be followed to successfully utilize the State Employee Tuition Waiver:
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Admissions Requirements: State employees must meet current admissions criteria and application deadlines. Prior to registering for classes, state employees must complete all admissions requirements for entering college credit or vocational courses as outlined in the current Seminole State Catalog. These students are responsible for paying the Florida SouthWestern State College application fee, complete all admission requirements, placement testing, submission of transcripts and proving completion of all prerequisite courses.
Registration Timing: State Employee Tuition Waiver students may not register prior to the designated State Employee Tuition Waiver registration date. You will be responsible for all fees for courses you register for prior to State Employee Tuition Waiver registration day. IMPORTANT: Confirm the date that you are allowed to register. You will be responsible for all course tuition and fees if you register prior to the State Employee registration day. Initial registration for each term must be on an approved state waiver registration date, usually beginning the first day of class and continuing daily through the last day of late registration. Please note: Anyone who registers prior to the specified dates assumes personal financial liability for the course(s). State Employee registration occurs at specific times. registration period for State of Florida employees. those registering during the appropriate time are also not eligible for the waiver. If you are seeking the waiver for a course, please do not register before the approved time.
Space Availability: Courses eligible for State Employee Tuition Waiver are only available if space permits. Only after non-waiver students have registered will you be able to register. Because the College receives no tuition for waived courses, waivers are only available for those courses that have not been filled by fee-paying students or those utilizing scholarships or grants. Therefore, the dates of registration are limited. Registration is limited to "space availability" and State employees must register between the first day of class and the last day of the add/drop period. Space available is defined to be college credit and vocational classes that are not full at the beginning of the identified drop/add period for the term or course. Courses in which the student has registered prior to the add/drop period but dropped during the add/drop period are not eligible for this waiver.
Waiver Application: Complete the State Employee Tuition Waiver application using the link at the top of this page. The online form must be completed no later than the date listed in the above table. *Forms must be completed no later than the deadline date listed above. Once this deadline passes, you will not be able to access the online form or receive a State Employee Tuition Waiver for the term.
Form Submission: State employees must complete the Seminole State Registration Form and submit it with the State Employee Tuition Waiver Form to the Registrar's Office.The Registrar's Office will register the student and retain a copy of the State Employee Tuition Waiver Form and place the copy into the student's permanent file. A completed waiver form. Once you log into the database, please click on Tuition Waiver Verification. Tuition waivers are due by the fourth day of the semester.
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Payment of Remaining Balance: The student must take the State Employee Tuition Waiver Form and a copy of the Registration Form to the Office of Financial Resources to receive the waiver. Fees not covered by the waiver will be determined, e.g., this waiver does not cover laboratory fees. The Financial Aid Assistant will provide a Fee Statement detailing the amount waived and the amount owed. The student must then go to the cashiering window and pay the amount owed by the close of business the same day of registration. If the balance is not paid by the close of business on the same day, the registration will be cancelled. Students must pay any charges not covered by the waiver. If there’s a balance owed, a Financial Hold will be placed.
Important Considerations
Several other important considerations should be kept in mind:
Course Restrictions: The waiver is limited to academic courses. Remedial math (i.e. Some courses or programs of study, by their nature, do not qualify for the waiver. These include online, directed individual study, independent study, non-college credit (such as workforce development clockhour and continuing education programs/courses), and limited access or selective admission programs such as Baccalaureate degree programs, Nursing, Fire Science Technology, EMT, and other A.S. Waiver is for college credit and vocational courses only; it is not applicable to non-credit (community education and Corporate College) courses.
Grade Requirements: Please Note: If you do not successfully complete coursework for which you have received this benefit, you will not be eligible for the benefit in your next term of enrollment. Courses must be taken for a grade; they may not be taken as audit.
Non-Retroactivity: Tuition waiver is for the current term of registration only. It is not retroactive. Waivers will not be retroactively applied to previous semesters/years.
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Tax Implications: Under IRS Section 117(d), any qualified tuition reduction provided to a state employee enrolled in undergraduate level courses is not subject to income tax. However, under IRS Section 127, annual amounts exceeding $5,250 of qualified education.
Financial Aid: Employees participating in the State Employee Waiver are also eligible to receive financial aid. Any waiver a student gets will be added to their Financial Aid package. This paperwork must be turned in on time. If the waiver is not shown in the student’s Financial Aid package before aid is sent out, the student must tell the Financial Aid Office.
Additional Waiver Programs at Tallahassee State College
Tallahassee State College offers several other waiver programs in addition to the State Employee Tuition Waiver. These include waivers for:
Homeless Students: This waiver is for any student who lacks a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence, or whose primary nighttime residence is a public or private shelter designed to provide temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized, or a public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, regular sleeping accommodation for human beings (defined in section 725 of the McKinney‐Vento Homeless Assistance Act, Section 1009.25, F.S., or Rule 6A‐10.087, F.A.C.
Former Foster Care Students: This waiver is for any student who is or was at the time he or she reached the age of 18, in the custody of the Department of Children and Family Services or a relative; who was adopted from DCF after 5/5/1997; or was placed in a guardianship by a court after spending at least 6 months in the custody of DCF after reaching 16 years of age. (Florida Statute 1009.25(1)(C)).
Active Military and Veterans: This waiver is for members of the United States Armed Forces, the United States Reserve Forces, or the National Guard, who reside in the state while enrolled in a Florida College System institution, state university, and/or technical career center (Florida Statute 1009.26). Also for any student who is a recipient of a Purple Heart, or another combat decoration superior in precedence which was awarded for valor. (FL Board of Governors Regulation 7.008-12).
Out-of-State Fee Waiver for Select Students: Effective July 1, 2014, applicable for fall 2014 and thereafter, House bill 851 amended s.1009.26, Florida States, Fee Waivers, to authorize an out-of-state fee waiver for select students who attended a high school in Florida.
Deceased First Responders and Military: This waiver is for any student who is a spouse or child of a deceased Florida National Guard Member, US Service Member, Fire Fighter, First Responder, Law Enforcement Officer, Correctional Officer, Correctional Probation Officer, or Teacher and School Administrator killed in the line of duty. (Florida Statute 112.19, 112.191).
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