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The University of Alabama offers an educational benefit to all regular, full-time and regular, part-time employees. The benefit extends to an employee’s eligible spouses and unmarried, dependent children up to the age of 26 after six (6) months of continuous employment. Only one benefit per student will be awarded even if a family unit has more than one eligible employee. Additional requirements and exceptions may apply. For additional details regarding eligibility, dependent verification requirements, and IRS taxation, refer to the Educational Benefit Policy.
Apply for Admission
Admission to the university is required before an employee, spouse or dependent child may receive the educational benefit for tuition.
Register for Classes
Register for your selected course(s) by the deadlines established by the Registrar’s Office each semester.
Submit Educational Benefit Form
Apply for the benefit once per academic year. Forms should be received at least 30 days before 1st day of classes.
The academic year begins with the fall semester and ends with the summer terms. Eligible employees, spouses, and/or dependent children will receive the educational benefit as a credit applied to the enrolled student’s account maintained by Student Account Services.
exclamationApplication Deadlines
The deadline corresponds to the ‘Last Day to Add a Course or Drop a Course Without a Grade of “W” for the Full Term‘ per the University Registrar’s Academic Calendar. The following deadlines apply:
For Spring 2025 Term | For Summer 2025 Term | For Fall 2025 Term |
---|---|---|
January 15, 2025 | May 30, 2025 | August 27, 2025 |
No benefits will be awarded for applications submitted after the applicable Add/Drop deadline for each term. The pending application will be rejected and eligible employees may reapply for the next available term. Applications are not retroactively approved for prior terms. Only one application is required per academic year.
Reimbursement Limits
Eligible full-time employees may receive a benefit equal to 100% of the tuition costs for up to three (3) credit hours during the fall and spring semesters and up to six (6) credit hours during the summer terms at the current undergraduate or graduate campus, resident (in-state) tuition rate, then 50% tuition for all other hours taken. Eligible part-time employees may receive a prorated benefit based upon their full-time equivalency (FTE). After eligible employees have been employed six (6) continuous months, dependents may receive a benefit equal to 50% of the tuition costs at the current undergraduate or graduate campus, resident (in-state) tuition rate for eligible courses.
Tuition Rates
The applicable tuition rate is based on the classification of the enrolled student, i.e., undergraduate or graduate. Higher tuition rates for special enrollment programs (i.e., law, medical, MBA, etc.) do not entitle the eligible employee or dependent to any amount to assist with educational costs above the current undergraduate or graduate campus, resident (in-state) tuition rates.
The educational benefit payment does not apply toward the cost of fees, e.g., course fees, college fees or charges associated with the auditing of a course.
Residency
Educational benefits are reimbursed at the in-state, resident tuition rates per Student Account Services. Employees and/or eligible spouse or dependent child(ren) charged the out-of-state, non-resident tuition rate will only receive reimbursement for the proportionate resident tuition rate.
InfoResidency Classification Issues
Human Resources will verify employment status for residency purposes, but HR does not control and cannot change residency for tuition purposes. If an employee, spouse and/or dependent child is incorrectly classified as a non-resident student with out-of-state tuition rates applied, please contact the Residency Coordinator in the Registrar’s Office for assistance. Review Residency FAQs for additional information.
Taxation
Educational benefits received by a University employee, their spouse, and/or dependent child(ren) may be taxable to the employee, particularly for graduate courses. For more information about taxation amounts and processing, refer to the Tax Office website.