Tuition Benefits Summary
Educational Opportunities for Employees and Spouses
The College is committed to assisting employees and their spouses wishing to further their education to increase their competence in their present positions, or to prepare for advancement in the future by allowing them to enroll in one Hampshire College course tuition-free per semester.
Eligibility
Benefit-eligible employees (.75–1.00 FTE) may enroll in Hampshire College courses for academic credit. Enrollment will be on a "space available" basis. An employee must complete one full year of consecutive service at the College prior to participation in this plan (first day of classes) if enrollment in a course requires release time. This one-year waiting period will be waived if a course takes place outside the employee's scheduled work hours and involves no disruption within his/her office or department.
Fees/Costs
Benefit-eligible employees may enroll in one course per semester tuition-free. Under this plan, there will be no charge for the usual application and registration fees. The employee will be responsible, however, for laboratory fees, music performance fees, etc. as well as books and other course materials.
A spouse (or eligible domestic partner) of an employee may enroll in one Hampshire course per term with the approval of the course instructor. The same fees/costs apply as with employees.
Course Attendance During Work Hours
Full-time staff members are not required to make up the time spent in the classroom; part-time staff members, however, are required to make up the time. Approval must be obtained in advance from the budget manager to ensure adequate office coverage is maintained. Time off or rearrangement of schedule to attend a course during work hours will be granted at the discretion of the department head based on the work load and schedule in the office or department. Interruption or rearrangement of work hours will be granted for only one course per semester and will not exceed four hours per week.
Degree Program for College Employees
Employees who qualify may enroll in the College's bachelor of arts degree program tuition-free.
Eligibility
This program is available to employees who have been employed full-time (.75 - 1.00 FTE) at the College for two years. The employee must qualify academically and be officially admitted by the admissions office. Participants will proceed through the educational process as regular students. With the exception of the one course per semester permitted under the Education Opportunities for Employees and Spouses policy, it is understood that all additional study required will be on the individual's own time.
Fees/Costs
Eligible employees will pay a fee to be determined by the admissions office for the initial evaluation of their application and their previous work experience. As in the Educational Opportunities for Employees and Spouses plan, the registration fee will be waived, but the employee will pay all other fees (i.e. laboratory fees, music performance fees, etc.) and for his/her books and other course materials.
Tuition Remission for Dependent Children
Dependent children of College employees with a full time equivalent (FTE) of .75–1.0 will be eligible for the full tuition benefit for their dependent children. Benefits-eligible employees with an FTE of .5–.74 will be eligible for a pro-rated benefit based on their FTE. Please refer to the Employee Policy Manual for complete information on the Tuition Remission benefit.
Eligibility
After one year of continuous service from date of their benefits eligibility, all full-time employees may apply for the tuition remission benefit for one or more dependents.
Fees/Costs
The tuition remission benefit provides full tuition remission, excluding all fees and room and board. The total of all scholarship funds received by each dependent may not exceed tuition for the year. Dependent children must make a reasonable effort to secure other scholarship funds.
The program is limited to four academic years (need not be consecutive), or until the dependent child earns a bachelor's degree, whichever occurs first.
An employee who separates from employment for any reason while his or her child is enrolled at the College will be expected to reimburse the College for the full tuition of any semester that was not at least 50% complete at the time of his or her separation.
Applying
The Tuition Remission Application must be completed each semester and submitted to the human resources office for processing. It is recommended that the form be completed before the beginning of each semester. The employee will be required to complete a separate application for each dependent. The employee will be required to supply proof of the dependent's age (i.e. driver's license, birth certificate, etc.) and official verification that the child is a dependent (copy of the most recent tax return).
Tuition Grant for Dependent Children
Tuition assistance for post-secondary undergraduate education in a degree or certificate program is available to the dependent children of full-time benefited (.75–1.00 FTE) College employees.
Tuition assistance in the amount of $2,000 per dependent child is available each academic year. This benefit is limited to four academic years (eight semesters), until the child earns a bachelor's degree, or reaches the age of 25, whichever occurs first.
Tuition assistance is limited to $4,000 for each Hampshire family in any academic year.
Beginning the fall semester of 2014, payments will be granted in the full $1,000 amount for tuition or other IRS “qualified expenses.” Details of qualified expenses can be found on the IRS website.
Eligibility
This benefit is available after one year of full-time employment at the College. Dependent children of employees who are participating in one of Hampshire's tuition exchange programs are not eligible for a tuition grant.
The institution must be any post-secondary institution (including junior/community, trade, technical, or secretarial college) that is an accredited institution, recognized candidate for accreditation, correspondent of an appropriate accrediting agency, or otherwise approved by Hampshire College.
Applying
The Tuition Grant Application must be submitted to the human resources office for processing. The employee will be required to complete a separate application for each dependent. The employee will be required to supply a copy of the current bill, a one-time proof of the dependent's age (i.e. driver's license, birth certificate, etc.), and official verification that the child is a dependent (copy of the most recent tax return).
At the beginning of each semester for which the employee is requesting this benefit, the employee must submit documentation indicating that the dependent completed the previous semester. If the employee realizes that she or he has used the payment for non-qualified expenses, the employee should inform the human resources office by December 1 of the calendar year of receipt so that those funds can be taxed. Payments for the spring semester will be paid after January 1 of the spring semester year to allow the employee to report a change in tax status within the same tax year.
Please refer to the Human Resources News and Policy Updates page for the complete Tuition Grant Policy revision.
Tuition Exchange Program (TEP)
Hampshire College is a member of the Tuition Exchange Program (TEP), a private consortium of colleges and universities nationwide that offers tuition exchange scholarships to children of employees of member institutions. Hampshire College offers the children of eligible employees an opportunity to apply for tuition exchange scholarships for full-time study at other participating institutions. A current listing of participating institutions can be found here.
The Tuition Exchange Program (TEP) Guidelines will provide helpful information in addition to this website.
TEP is not available for graduate or professional study, non-degree study, or work toward a second undergraduate degree. Scholarships will be awarded for full-time undergraduate study, which is defined as a minimum of 12 hours per semester or 24 hours per academic year
Applicable Definitions
- Eligible Dependent: The dependent of a full-time, benefit-eligible (1.0 FTE) employee who has completed 1 year of continuous full-time employment by the TEP application priority deadline is eligible to apply for the TEP. Should an employee complete 1 year of continuous full-time employment after the priority deadline but before May 31, that person may submit the application after the employment anniversary date for submission to the TEP waiting list for that year.
- Dependent: A dependent is any natural, adopted, or stepchild of an employee, an employee's spouse, or an employee's same-sex and opposite-sex domestic partner. The dependent must be unmarried and under age 24 and must be claimed as an employee's dependent for tax purposes in the most recent calendar year: the employee must expect to claim that dependent in the current calendar year. TEP benefit is available to the eligible dependent of a deceased employee who dies while employed by Hampshire College for one year after the death of the employee.
- Student: The eligible dependent who currently attends a TEP institution, or has applied to and has been accepted for full-time undergraduate study at a college or university that participates in the TEP, is considered a student.
- Maximum Scholarship: For those applying for a TEP scholarship from Hampshire ("imports"), the scholarship is available for a maximum of four years (8 semesters) of full-time undergraduate study. Hampshire College determines acceptance of the TEP application and the amount of the scholarship. The TEP scholarship covers up to full tuition or an optional amount above that set amount. The scholarship may be reduced by other grant aid that a student receives. There is no limit to how many of the eligible employee's dependents apply for the TEP scholarship each academic year. The maximum scholarship awarded for attendance at another institution may vary. Information is available on the TEP website.
- Deadline: As some schools have early deadline dates, the Tuition Exchange Program applications should be submitted through the EZ app process as soon as possible.
- Application Selection: Eligibility for the Tuition Exchange Program does not guarantee that an application will be selected or that the school of choice will award a scholarship. The importing school makes the decision on who they will offer a scholarship to. All eligible Hampshire employees interested in the TEP should note that this is an opportunity and not a benefit, as many factors may limit participation by the College in the program in any given year.
- Combination with other Hampshire Benefits: This benefit may not be combined with the Hampshire Tuition Grant program.
Application Procedure for the TEP Scholarship
Applications are made through the Tuition Exchange’s EZ-App Process. This is a simplified, electronic application for eligible families. Employees should review the How-to Guide here and take 15 minutes to review the accompanying podcast. It’s a quick and helpful step to ensure your application is submitted correctly.
Completing a TE EZ application is a two-step process:
- The student (not the parent!) applying for consideration for a Tuition Exchange Scholarship must first create an account.
- This will enable the student to log in and complete the TE application. When filling out the application, make sure to select Hampshire College from the employer dropdown. Important: DO NOT use the EZ-App to apply for Tuition Remission here at Hampshire.
- Save Key Information: Write down and save the following information as you will need it to track your scholarship application status:
- Four-digit TE ID
- Student’s birth date
- Student’s email address
Important Note: If you need to add more schools to your application, you must submit a new application listing only the additional schools. Notification of scholarships varies from institution to institution. Many colleges and universities notify applicants shortly after admission, while others wait until April 1. Your dependent child will be notified of admission and/or a tuition exchange scholarship directly from the awarding institution
Guidelines for Selecting TEP Applicants
The TEP program no longer requires a balance of import and export scholarships. Therefore if the employee’s dependent meets eligibility, they will be able to apply for the scholarship.
This website is intended to offer a general overview of Hampshire College benefits plans only. Every effort has been made to summarize these programs accurately. In all cases, the actual provisions of each benefit plan will govern if there is any inconsistency between this site and Hampshire's formal plans or contracts.