Waiver of Tuition and Fees for Seminole State College Non-Bargaining Employees (Procedure 2.0280)

Purpose

To provide tuition and selected fee waivers to Seminole State College employees toward enrollment in college credit courses toward a degree, credential, or professional development on a space-available basis. This includes instruction toward a postsecondary career certificate. The College encourages employees to acquire additional knowledge, credentials, and degrees by investing in career advancement through education.

Definitions

  1. Employee:  an individual employed by Seminole State College
  2. Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver program: This program allows employees to apply for a waiver of tuition and selected fees for up to thirty (30) credit hours per fiscal year of Seminole State College coursework. The waiver is applied to the academic year in which the course begins, the fall term. All employees who utilize this benefit shall meet the College's admission requirements.
  3. Tuition: the category of course expense designated annually by the District Board of Trustees. Reference the College Catalog for current rates.
  4. Waiver: the process of approving College payment on the employee's student account for an approved tuition and/or fee expense prior to the Add/Drop date for the session.
  5. Employment length eligibility: an individual employed in a non-bargaining full-time position for at least six (6) continuous months before application for the Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver, or a part-time position for at least 600 paid hours within two years before application
  6. Waived Fees: eligible expenses that are covered by the employee fee waiver program
  7. Not waived Fees: expenses that employees are responsible for covering, or expenses covered by grants, scholarships, gifts, or other awards (excluding loans)
  8. Term: courses offered in Fall, Spring, and Summer
  9. Session: the specific period in which a course is offered, i.e., full, A, B, 12-week, other. Full-time employees may choose courses in one or more sessions, on separate applications, for a waiver of up to thirty (30) credit hours per fiscal year
  10. Course: A scheduled educational offering from Seminole State. The associated tuition rate may be a College credit, a Career Program, or a Baccalaureate. The course may be taken for a grade, pass/fail, or as an audit.


Eligibility

  1. On the date the Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver is filed for the session in which the waiver is to be used, the employee must not have given notice of separation or been given such notice by the College. Employees who terminate employment before the end of the designated 100% refund period each term and desire to continue their courses will be assessed fees for the course(s).

  2. Non-bargaining full-time employees may apply for a waiver of tuition for up to thirty (30) credit hours per fiscal year once employed by the college for at least six (6) continuous months. Full­ time employees, bargaining unit: reference the agreement in force on the date of application.

  3. Part-time employees: After accumulating 600 hours of employment within a two-year period, a part-time employee is eligible to apply for the Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver. Student employment positions are ineligible to apply for an employee fee waiver.

  4. Courses offered at other educational institutions are not covered under this program. Employees seeking to take courses at other educational institutions must apply for professional development funds through the Staff and Program Development (SPD) Program.


Procedure

  1. Before the employee begins the waiver form and registration process, they need to view the Academic Calendar to determine the registration date and time for course registration for the term.

  2. College employees must complete the College's Application for Admission and residency requirements for tuition purposes, as outlined in the current Seminole State Catalog. Returning active students who have already met these requirements may proceed directly to completing the waiver form.

  3. The employee may request a waiver for any College credit, Career Program, or Baccalaureate course by submitting an Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver.

    1. Course waivers are limited to two attempts per course.
    2. Employees who wish to register for a course (s) during regular work hours must first have a flexible work arrangement approved by their supervisor and Human Resources before submitting an Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver.
    3. The employee must submit the Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver applications at any time before the session in which the course is requested, with a deadline of seven College business days before the start of the session. If the employee needs to change the course (for example: Swap class, change time or day, etc.) after the seven-day approval period, the employee can complete another form to enroll in a different course before the academic session's add/drop period ends.
    4. Employees wanting to audit a course can only choose this option during the add/drop period.

      The following chart provides employee-eligible expenses that may be used with the waiver:

      Covered by WaiverNot Covered by Waiver
      Seminole State College In-state Tuition and certain associated fees: distance learning, financial aid, student activity, capital improvement, technology, ID card, and any others designated by the College. Reference the College Catalog for current rates.Application fee, Adult Education, English Language Institute tuition, Dishonored Check Service Charge, International Student Fee, Foreign Exchange Student Processing Fee, Out-of-state fees, Student ID Card Replacement Fee, Transcript Fee, Degree Verification Fee, Replacement Diploma Fee, Parking Fine, Third and Fourth Attempt Fees, Course User /Lab Fees, Non-Credit Courses, and any others designated by the College. Reference the College Catalog for current rates.
  4. After the form has been signed by the supervisor, the Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver form is routed to the student accounts department for posting.
    1. The Supervisor approving an employee (s) taking courses at Seminole State will need to review the form to verify that the employee is not taking the class a third time and is not at their annual 30-credit hour limit.

  5. The Student Accounts Services Department will process the Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver form upon receipt. An email will be sent to the employee when a waiver is posted.

  6. The employee will review the Fee Invoice three days before the listed fee payment deadline date to ensure the waiver was applied to their account. If an employee has registered for more than 30 credit hours for the year, they will need to pay the balance by the fee payment deadline to avoid late payment penalties.

  7. Once a waiver has been processed by Student Account Services and an employee decides not to attend that course, the employee or assignee must follow the college's withdrawal deadline dates and appropriate procedures in order to avoid receiving a failure grade ("F") or incomplete ("I") for that course.


Application Process

  1. Before the employee begins the waiver form and registration process, they need to view the Academic Calendar to determine the registration date and time for course registration for the term.

  2. College employees must complete the College's Application for Admission and residency requirements for tuition purposes, as outlined in the current Seminole State Catalog. Returning active students who have already met these requirements may proceed directly to completing the waiver form.

  3. Employee must register for the selected course(s).

  4. Employee completes the College's Application for Employee Tuition and Fee Waiver at least seven College business days before the start of the session. Employees wanting to audit a course can only choose this option during the add/drop period. If the selected course is full, or if the employee needs to change the course after the seven-day approval period, the employee can complete another form to enroll in a different course before the academic sessions add/drop period.

  5. The supervisor will review the application completed by the employee for any conflicts with the existing work schedule or employment status. If there are schedule conflicts, the supervisor will consider the employee's request for a Flexible Work Arrangements (Procedure 2.0010) to make sure it will not impact operational needs. If there are no remaining schedule conflicts, the supervisor will approve the application, and submit it to the Human Resources (HR) department for employment verification.

  6. HR verifies employment eligibility for the waiver and then sends it to Student Accounting.

  7. Student Accounting posts a waiver to the student employee account and then notifies them of any additional fees that need to be paid.

Rulemaking Authority and Law(s) Implemented: Florida Statues §§1001.64, 1001.65, 1009.26, FAC 6A- 14.054, Policies 1.020, 2.280

History-Adopted 05/2025

Dr Lorenz signature for procedure 2.0280 signed 5.21.25

Contact

Seminole State General Contact Information