Spouse and Dependent Tuition Waiver Policy and Procedure.

Spouse Dependent Waiver Form

Policy:
A 50% tuition waiver for approved for-credit classes offered by and taught at Minot State University (MSU) is available to the spouse and/or dependents of a MSU benefited employee, employed on the first day of the semester, as defined in Board Policy 703.2. This policy includes NDUS office and Core Technology Services (CTS) benefited employees.

Definitions:
1. Spouse - must be legally married as recognized by the state of North Dakota.

2. Dependent - an unmarried child who is related to the employee as a natural child, a child placed for adoption, a legally adopted child, a child for whom the employee has legal guardianship, a stepchild, or a foster child, under the age of 26 and financially dependent on the employee (does not include the spouse of an adult dependent child).  

3. Tuition - tuition charged for regular for-credit courses the spouse or dependent is enrolled in.  The 50% waiver will apply to tuition only.  Fees and room and board charges are not included in the 50% tuition waiver.

Eligibility:
1. There is no limit on the number of qualifying dependents utilizing the benefit at one time.

2. If the spouse or dependent who qualifies for this benefit is also an employee of the institution, the Employee Tuition Waiver policy applies.

3. In instances where married spouses work for the same institution, only one benefit of 50% tuition waiver is
available to the dependent.  The benefit cannot be doubled for a 100% benefit.

4. The spouse/dependent waiver will not be received if the employee or the spouse or dependent has an overdue accounts receivable balance.

5. Spouses and dependents who are also eligible for the Academic Excellence Scholarship, the ND Veterans Dependent Waiver, the ND Firefighter, EMT, and Peace Office Dependent Waiver or the Cultural Diversity Award Program will receive the single waiver program of greatest benefit to the student.

6.  Early entry students are eligible for the spouse/dependent waiver.

7.The spouse/dependent waiver cannot be used in situations where no tuition is charged or where the tuition flows to an outside entity.  Examples include but are not limited to collaborative credits taken from institutions other than MSU, continuing education units, study abroad and radiologic technology clinical experiences.


Procedure:
1. An Application for Spouse/Dependent Waiver and required documentation as stated on the application must be submitted to the Financial Aid Office 10 days prior to the start of each semester.

2. A separate Application for Spouse/Dependent Waiver is required for each semester.

3. Human Resource and/or Payroll Office staff will verify the benefited employee status.   

4. Financial Aid Office staff will verify the spouse or dependent relationship utilizing third party documentation submitted by the employee:

a. Documentation to verify the student relationship to the employee, including a birth certification or marriage certificate, or other documents as appropriate.

b. The Financial Aid Office may verify dependency by asking for documentation such as a financial aid report, health insurance documentation, tax transcript from the Internal Revenue Service or copy of a federal tax return.

5. In accordance with federal regulations, the tuition waiver will be included as financial assistance in the
student’s financial aid package.

6. In accordance with IRS regulations, the total value of spouse or dependent graduate level courses are considered taxable income.

Applicable federal, state and social security taxes will be deducted from the employee's paycheck at the end of each semester.

Reference:

 

Revised 12/17/2018


Please contact Sara Abrahamson or Laurie Weber if you have questions concerning this policy.

Sara Abrahamson
Director, Human Resources
Minot State University
701-858-4610 (office)
701-858-3686 (fax)