You are eligible to apply for the Tuition Assistance program if you meet all criteria below:

  • Have completed at least six months of consecutive full-time service as a regular employee in a benefits-eligible category
  • Are an active full-time (30 hours or more/week) staff member or an active regular full-time faculty member scheduled to work at least 40 hours per week
  • Meet the six-month service requirement and are actively working on or before the following dates*:
    1. September 1 for fall semester,
    2. January 1 for spring semester, and
    3. May 1 for summer school in 2024 (must meet 2-year service requirement for summer courses in 2023)
  • In good standing with a satisfactory performance record, and your application is approved by your supervisor (and Associate Operating Officer or equivalent for DUHS) prior to requesting reimbursement and within 90 days of the last day of class

*Courses that begin prior to your 6-month anniversary are not eligible for reimbursement.

Employees requesting reimbursement are required to have direct deposit.

House staff are not eligible for this program.

Eligible Courses

To be eligible for reimbursement, courses must meet the following guidelines:

  • Must be related to the employee's current job or future career growth at Duke
  • Must provide academic course credit that can be used towards earning a degree
  • Must be listed in the institution's course catalogue
  • Must be taken at Duke, Watts College of Nursing, or any other higher educational institution that is accredited by a regional accreditor recognized by the U.S. Department of Education (USDE). USDE-recognized regional accrediting organizations are:
    • Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU);
    • Higher Learning Commission (HLC);
    • WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC);
    • Southern Association of Colleges and School Commission on Colleges (SACSCOC);
    • Middle States Commission on Higher Education (MSCHE); and
    • New England Commission on Higher Education (NECHE).
  • Must be documented as part of an employee's professional development plan
  • Must be completed with a grade of "C" or better, or "Pass" if a grade is not provided
  • The course(s) must be approved by your supervisor prior to requesting reimbursement and within 90 days of the last day of class
  • Must not be a certification program, unless courses provide academic credit that can be used towards earning a degree
  • One semester of coursework that is solely research, provided the course is in pursuit of a Master’s thesis or Doctoral dissertaion

Eligible courses include classroom, online or distance learning, and ESL (English as a Second Language).  Additionally, self-paced courses are reimbursable under the guidelines of the program. With these courses, 1) there must be a designated start and end date on the application within a specific semester/term, 2) it cannot take longer than the equivalent of one semester, and 3) there will be no exceptions to these dates when it is time to process the reimbursement.  Ineligible courses include certificate programs that do not grant academic credit towards a degree.

Please note: The year in which the course begins is the year/semester/quarter used to determine tuition reimbursement eligibility.