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The University of Tennessee Southern

Discounts and Waivers

In This Section:

A variety of fee discounts and waivers are available! Remember to submit a new form for each semester that you are enrolled. The form must be completed and have all of the appropriate signatures for the Bursar’s Office to be able to process.

Find Your Forms

Acceptance Dates

A new form is required for each semester. Please note that if you are needing the waiver/discount to apply to your fees to secure your classes, the form will need to be turned in by the payment deadline for the term.

Forms cannot be accepted before the opening day for each term. All signatures must be dated on or after the opening date. The deadline to turn in a fee waiver form is the last day of classes for the appropriate semester.

  • Fall Opens : July 1 > Ends last day of classes
  • Summer Opens :  March 1 > Ends last day of classes
  • Spring Opens : October 1  > Ends last day of classes

How to Submit

Make sure the form is completely filled out and has all required signatures. Submit by email, fax, mail, or drop off in the office!

  • Email to utsbursar@utsouthern.edu
    • Note: Please be sure to redact any social security numbers to ensure that your personal information remains secure OR use the secureUT Vault email system to send your form.
  • Fax to: 931-363-9818
  • Mail to: University of Tennessee Southern, Attn: Bursar’s Office, 433 West Madison Street, Pulaski, TN 38478
  • Bring to: 1st floor of Colonial Hall and drop off to a member of the Bursar’s Office

Discount and Waiver Forms

Find the forms you need below.

  • Dependent children, twenty-three (23) years of age or younger, of Tennessee certified public school teachers or employees of the State of Tennessee are eligible for a twenty-five percent (25%) discount of their maintenance fee.
  • In the case of a retired state employee or retired teacher, the retirement verification must be made by the Division of Retirement. The otherwise completed form should be mailed or faxed to the attention of the Retired Payroll Section for verification as follows.
  1. TCRS, 10th Floor Andrew Jackson Building, 502 Deaderick Street, Nashville, TN 37243 or fax 615-401-6818
  2. If faxing the form you must include a mailing address to which the form can be returned to the employee.
  • Graduate fee waivers provided to University of Tennessee regular employees and graduate student employees not classified as a GTA or GRA (primary position) must be recognized and treated as a taxable fringe benefit. Undergraduate fee waivers are not taxable.
  • All university employees are allowed tax free graduate tuition benefits of $5,250 per calendar year under the university’s Section 127 Educational Assistance plan. Once the $5,250 limit has been exceeded for non GTA‐GRA employees, the taxable portion of the graduate fee waiver will be added to taxable income and all applicable employment taxes will be withheld. Federal income taxes will be withheld on the combined taxable wages and fee waiver value using the IRS tax table rates and the employee’s signed W‐4.
  • Individuals may provide a signed Employee Request for Job-Related Tuition Waiver approved by the department head verifying that the program of study is “job-related.” If so, the waiver is excluded from taxation. This form must be received by the University‐wide Administration Payroll Office for each semester by the due date. For more information, visit the UT Fee Waiver Taxation page.
  • Students that are Tennessee residents and totally disabled may qualify for a fee waiver for audit or credit.
  • Audit Only Courses – Tennessee residents who are totally and permanently disabled may AUDIT courses without paying tuition charges. These charges may include the following: maintenance fees, program services fees, and special course fees for Business, Fine Art, Chemistry, etc.
  • Credit Course(s) – Tennessee residents who are totally and permanently disabled may enroll in courses for CREDIT at the cost of one-half the normal per credit hour fee, not to exceed $70 per
  • semester. These charges include maintenance fees and program services fees. Course fees are NOT includes in the fee waiver.
  • To ensure your Permanent Total Disability tuition reduction request is processed before the fee payment deadline each semester:
  1. Inform the Office of Disability Services (ODS) each semester of your intent to attend classes.
  2. Provide ODS with current documentation before the beginning of each Fall semester to verify current eligibility for this program as described in TCA 49-7-113.

Age Sixty (60) Audit Only Courses – Tennessee residents who are sixty (60) years of age may AUDIT courses without paying tuition charges. These charges may include the following: maintenance fees, program services fees, and special course fees for Business, Fine Art, Chemistry, etc.

Credit Course(s) – Tennessee residents who are sixty-five (65) years of age may enroll in courses for CREDIT at the cost of one-half the normal per credit hour fee, not to exceed $70 per semester. These charges include maintenance fees and program services fees. Course fees are not includes in the fee waiver.

  • To ensure your Senior Citizen tuition reduction request is processed before the fee payment deadline each semester:
  1. Before the beginning of each Fall semester, provide the Bursar’s Office with a new fee waiver form and copy of your driver’s license. If you have utilized the waiver in previous semesters, you may omit the driver’s license and only submit the form.
  2. Inform the Bursar’s Office each semester of your intent to attend classes. This should only be done after you have registered for classes either online or through the Office of Academic Records.
  • Fulltime employees of the State of Tennessee of the executive, judicial, or legislative branches of the Tennessee state government are eligible for a waiver to cover their debt service fee, maintenance fee, registration fee, student activity fee, and tuition charge. The time frame in which a course is offered by the Institution, and for purposes of these rules includes Fall, Spring, Summer and special session terms, as defined by the individual universities and colleges. It is the intent of these rules that over the course of special session terms and the two Summer semester terms an employee or member of the General Assembly will be limited to no more than two courses, the instruction periods of which shall not overlap.
  • Fall Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than July 1st
  • Spring Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than October 1st
  • Summer Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than March 1st
  • Please note that Tennessee School Teachers are NOT eligible for this fee waiver.
  • Last Day to Accept Form for Given Term: Last Day of Class
  • Download public higher education fee waiver form for full time State of Tennessee employees Form (PDF)
  • Fee discount and fee waiver programs for State of Tennessee employees Rules
  • Full-time regular employees of the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) and UT Systems are eligible to enroll in one credit course per term at any state of Tennessee public postsecondary institution (TBR or UT), with fees waived for the employee.
  • Part-time regular and part-time temporary employees, excluding adjuncts, of community colleges and TN Colleges of Applied Technology (TCATs) are eligible to enroll in one credit course per term at the college in which they work, with fees waived for the employee.
  • The waiver is limited to one (1) class, not to exceed 4 credits or 120 clock hours. It may apply for partial payment of classes of more than 4 credit hours or 120 clock hours.
  • Please be sure to indicate the institution that you work for when using the form below.
  • Download request for educational assistance form for full-time regular employees of the TBR and UT Systems. (PDF)
  • Policies for Educational assistance for employees of the TBR and UT Systems.
  • Full-time regular faculty and staff may enroll without payment of maintenance fees for up to a maximum of nine (9) undergraduate or graduate credit hours per term/semester. Part-time regular faculty and staff working 50 percent time or more may enroll without payment of maintenance fees based upon their percent of effort. In addition, state law provides full-time regular employees with a fee waiver for one course for credit per term at any state supported college, university, or area vocational-technical school.
  • Fall Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than July 1st
  • Spring Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than October 1st
  • Summer Forms should be signed and submitted no earlier than March 1st
  • Last Day to Accept Form for Given Term: Last Day of Class
  • Download UT employee request form for course approval and waiver of fees. (PDF)
  • Graduate and Undergraduate Assistant Fee Waiver Policy
  • Educational assistance and fee waiver info for UT employees.