Administering Fellowships

These are merit-based awards to enable graduate students to pursue academic programs and research.

NOTE: If students are NOT paid through the UW payroll the following information does not apply.

• Taxes
• Tuition
• Internationl Student Tuition Waiver
• GAIP health insurance
• Technology Fee

Taxes

The University of Washington does not withhold federal income taxes on fellowships and traineeships, and this income will not be reported on a W-2 form for the student. Fellows and trainees will receive a letter from the Payroll Office in January that tells them the income from fellowships or traineeships. For further information, fellows and trainees should consult IRS Publication 970 (http://www.irs.gov/publications/p970/ch01.html or in pdf:  http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf.

Tuition, Technology Fee, Insurance

Fellowships and traineeships vary considerably. Each fellowship and traineeship will have its own set of guidelines and restrictions, usually set by the funding agency. Following are the UW procedures concerning fellowships and traineeships:

Tuition:

1. If the fellowship provides a RESIDENT tuition waiver, it MUST BE REQUESTED by submitting a Student Aid Authorization Form to Student Fiscal Services or entering the waiver on-line. The cost of tuition is usually charged to the appointment distribution budget.
   Student Aid Authorization Forms are available at Student Accounts. Student Fiscal Services processes waivers requested on a Student Aid Authorization Form.  Information can be found at:  http://f2.washington.edu/fm/sfs/dept/scholarship-fellowship



2. If a NON-RESIDENT fellow or trainee:
   1. Is paid through the UW payroll system, AND
   2. Has an active distribution for at least 5 of the 6 pay periods per quarter,
   • Fall quarter 9/16-12/15
   • Winter quarter: 12/16-3/15
   • Spring quarter: 3/16-6/15
   • Summer quarter: 6/16-9/15, only 2 consecutive pay periods necessary AND
   3. Receives a stipend of AT LEAST $500 PER MONTH, AND
   4. Is registered for at least 10 credits (except summer when the minimum is two credits unless more is required by the terms of the grant funding the fellowship or traineeship).
   
   --THEN he or she qualifies for an Non-Resident Differential (NRD) waiver. NRD waivers are automatically placed on the student's account.
   
   NOTE:
   
   • Waivers, exemptions, and graduate appointee insurance will not be processed until the appointment that makes the student eligible is entered in the HEPPS system.
   • If the student's tuition statement does not reflect the NRD exemption by the beginning of the third week of the quarter, please contact the Fellowships & Awards Office of the Graduate School immediately at gradappt@uw.edu or 543-7152.
   • NRD waivers are placed ONLY for graduate fellows & graduate trainees in job codes 0859, 0860, 0861, 0863 & 0864. Consult Academic Personnel about senior fellows and trainees.
   • Graduate students must be registered for the required 10 or more credits (except summer when the requirement is at least 2 credits) or have a petition for reduced enrollment approved by the Graduate School. The Petition for Reduced Enrollment form and instructions can be found at: http://www.grad.washington.edu/forms/index.shtml
   
   

   Health Insurance:

   • If the above conditions are met AND the monthly stipend is AT LEAST $800 per month, then fellows and trainees are eligible for the graduate student appointee health insurance (GAIP) for themselves and for half the cost of insuring their dependents.
   • For appointments that are at least $800 per month, for at least 5 of the 6 quarterly pay periods, use job class code 0863 for fellows and 0864 for trainees. The insurance eligibility is AUTOMATICALLY determined by information from the HEPPS (payroll database).
   • The payroll (benefits) load rate is charged to the appointment distribution budget. For current load rates, please go to: http://www.washington.edu/admin/finacct/loadrate.html.
   • To obtain coverage, students must enroll online each quarter by the deadline (see graduate appointee insurance information at: http://www.washington.edu/admin/hr/benefits/insure/gaip/index.html) and be registered for 10 credits by the 10th day of the quarter.
   
   

   Technology Fee:

   Fellows and trainees who are eligible for the GAIP insurance are also exempt from the technology fee. The system is supposed to AUTOMATICALLY enter the exemption. If there is a problem, contact Student Fiscal Services.