As part of the Tuition Assistance Benefit program, a dependent's tuition assistance is determined by which campus they attend. See the table below for details.

Option A - Home Campus

Dependent attends the same campus where employee works.

CU Anschutz
  • 12 credits for undergraduate or graduate credit-granting courses.
  • Limited to eligible courses offered by the CU Anschutz campus. Options avaliable under CU Anschutz are limited to Nursing, Public Health and Graduate School courses; exceptions are listed below.
  • If both parents/partners are employed at CU in eligible appointments, the dependent(s) may waive up to a combined maximum of 24 credits per academic year (fall to summer).
CU Boulder
  • 40% tuition benefit for undergraduate or graduate credit granting courses.
  • Limited to eligible courses offered by CU Boulder.
  • Each dependent of the employee is entitled to recieve the 40% tuition benefit. 
  • If both parents are employed at CU Boulder and/or System, each of the dependents are eligible for 80%.
CU Colorado Springs
  • 12 credits for undergraduate or graduate credit-granting courses.
  • Limited to eligible courses offered by CU Colorado Springs
  • If both parents/partners are employed at CU in eligible appointments, the dependent(s) may waive up to a combined maximum of 24 credit hours per academic year (fall to summer).
CU Denver
  • 12 credits for undergraduate or graduate credit-granting courses.
  • Limited to eligible courses offered by the CU Denver campus. Exceptions are listed below. 
  • If both parents/partners are employed at CU in eligible appointments, the dependent(s) may waive up to a combined maximum of 24 credit hours per academic year (fall to summer).
System Administration
  • System Administration follows the campus rules where classes are being taken.
  • May use any of the campus options. Any campus of registration is considered the dependent's Option A - Home Campus.
  • May enroll in eligible courses on any campus.

Option B - Other campus

All CU campuses
  • Eligible dependents recieve $270 per credit hour for a maximum of 12 credits ($3,240) per academic year.
  • Eligible dependent may register during the normal designated registration date for undergraduate credit-granting courses.
  • Graduate courses are not eligible.
  • If both parents are eligible employees of the university, the dependent(s) may recieve $270 per credit hour of a combined maximum of 24 credits hours per academic year. Eligible dependents may enroll of courses on any campus.
  • 12 credits can be used in one semester or split among semesters during the same academic year (fall to summer).


Dependent eligibility

Employees must be eligible for the Tuition Assistance Benefit to use it for a dependent.

Dependents must be verified through the Dependent Eligibility Verification process. You can learn more about the documentation needed for Dependent Eligibility Verification.

Eligible dependents for the Tuition Assistance Benefit:

  • Spouse
  • Common law spouse
  • Civil union partner
  • Domestic partners
  • Children under the age of 27
  • Qualifying disabled children over the age of 27

 

Dependent Tuition Assistance Benefit usage rules

The Tuition Assistance Benefit can be used for one or multiple dependents.

  • Employees and dependents can simultaneously use the Tuition Assistance Benefit during the same academic year.
    • If an employee works at CU Denver, CU Anschutz, or CU Colorado Springs campuses, employees may split their 12 credits with a dependent or multiple dependents.
    • If an employee works at CU Boulder campus, CU Boulder employees will receive 12 credits for themselves. Their dependent(s) will receive a either 40% discount per semester at CU Boulder campus for Option A – Home Campus, or CU Boulder employee can split their 12 credits with dependent(s) using Option B – other campus, which will be a $270 discount per credit for the dependent.
    •  Multiple dependents must use the same option, either Option A - Home Campus or Option B - Other Campus, and the same campus

Credits are counted from the fall semester through the following summer semester.

  • Credits can be used in one semester or over the year.
  • Unused credits do not carry over.

 

Tuition Assistance Benefit course and program eligibility

The Tuition Assistance Benefit can only be used at University of Colorado campuses: CU Anschutz, CU Boulder, CU Colorado Springs, and CU Denver.

Course exclusions:

  • Audits, study abroad, most Continuing Education, Extended Studies, the mini-MBA, the Executive MBA program, the One-Year MBA program, CU Boulder's Part-Time Evening MBA program and CU Boulder degree programs on Coursera.
    • At CU Boulder, the follow Continuing Education courses are eligible for TAB: Master of Arts in Corporate Communication (Course prefix: CCOM); Master of Science in Outdoor Recreation Economy (Course prefix: OREC); and Master of Arts in Teacher Leadership (Course prefix: EDUA).
  • For CU Anschutz, only Public Health, Nursing and Graduate School courses are eligible. The School of Medicine, Physician Assistant Program, Dental School and Anesthesiologist Assistant Program are not eligible for the Tuition Assistance Benefit. 
  • If dependent TAB is using Option B - Other Campus, dependent cannot use the TAB toward graduate courses.

 

Tuition Assistance Benefit application

Employees must fill out a Tuition Assistance Benefit application each semester they would like to use the benefit for their dependent.

How to acess the application:

  1. Log into the employee portal.
  2. Open the CU Resources dropdown menu (at the top center of the page) and select Forms.
  3. Click the Benefits tile, then click the Tuition Assistance Application tile.

The TAB application will open on the first of the following months with deadlines 4-8 weeks past the opening date. 

  • Fall Semester: August
  • Spring Semester: December
  • Summer Semester: May

If the first of the month falls on the weekend, the application will open on the following Monday.

Tuition Assistance Benefit Employee Taxation

  • The employee is not taxed for any TAB amount when a dependent takes undergraduate courses, unless the dependent is a domestic partner or a child of a domestic partner. 
  • The employee is taxed for the total amount of TAB when a dependent takes graduate courses. 
  • For more information, visit the Tuition Assistance Benefit taxation webpage to watch a video and read more about the Tuition Assistance Benefit taxation implications.

 

Tuition Assistance Benefit Student Bills and Fees

The Tuition Assistance Benefit does not cover application fees or student fees, which vary by campus. You can estimate student fees for the campus where dependent is taking courses on their Bursar website. 

Bursar websites:

For Colorado residents, each undergraduate student must apply for the College Opportunity Fund (COF) and pay the difference if OCF is exhausted. Residents attending CU Boulder must also authorize the COF. Check you campus page for all deadlines.