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UW Graduate School - Faculty and Staff

General Tuition Waivers

The Graduate School has a limited supply of discretionary tuition waivers.

This request process IS NOT for:

  • Tuition waivers for Academic Student Employees (e.g., TAs, RAs, SAs)
  • Tuition waivers from GSEE
  • Non-Resident Differential (NRD) tuition waivers

Eligibility

  1. A graduate student who has been awarded a nationally competitive, individually awarded, significantly funded fellowship that provides limited to no tuition support. Contact the Graduate School Office of Fellowships & Awards with questions about eligible fellowships.
  2. Special circumstances determined in advance in consultation with the Graduate School Office of Fellowships & Awards.

Requirements and Limitations

  1. These tuition waivers cover the resident operating portion of tuition. The waiver will cover additional fees only if the fellowship sponsor indicates it is required.
  2. Before contributing waivers, the Graduate School expects that any institutional or cost-of-education allowance provided by the fellowship be spent first on benefits and tuition.
  3. These tuition waivers cannot be used with foreign-sponsored fellowships.
  4. These tuition waivers are dependent on the availability of funds, which varies on an annual basis.
  5. In summer quarter, tuition waivers will only be provided for a maximum of two credits.

How To Request Waivers

Waiver requests are made to The Graduate School by departments. Students wishing to be considered for a tuition waiver should contact their Graduate Program Adviser. To request awards, departments should:

  1. You will need access to request awards in MyGrad (request MyGrad access).
  2. Gather required documentation, including:
    1. Fellowship offer letter stating the specific components of the fellowship (stipend, institutional allowance, etc.,)
    2. If applicable, sponsor requirements of the institution (e.g., does the fellowship require that the student not be charged tuition?)
  3. Calculate the amount of funds requested.
    1. If the fellowship includes an allowance that may be used for insurance and tuition, allocate the funds first to benefits (if the student needs insurance).
    2. Allocate any remaining funds to tuition.
    3. The request amount for the tuition waiver should be the amount of tuition remaining AFTER the allowance has been allocated as outlined above.
  4. Make the request in MyGrad: “View Admin” > “Awards” > “Requests” > “Request New Award” > “General Tuition Waiver”

Request a General Tuition Waiver

Any questions about eligibility or the tuition waiver process can be directed to the Office of Fellowships & Awards.