Updates to the WCU Tuition Waiver
Western Carolina University continues to invest in making employee benefits more accessible and user friendly. One of the most valuable benefits available to eligible faculty and staff is the WCU Tuition Waiver, which allows employees to pursue educational goals while contributing to a stronger university community.
As part of ongoing modernization efforts, Human Resources and Payroll, in partnership with Information Technology, have begun transitioning select HR business processes to the cloud. These updates are designed to simplify form completion, improve workflows, and increase efficiency across HR operations.
What the Tuition Waiver Program Offers
According to the university’s official Tuition Assistance information, eligible fulltime faculty and staff who participate in the Teachers’ and State Employees’ Retirement System or Optional Retirement Program may enroll in up to three courses per academic year—only one waiver may be used during the summer—on a tuition free, space available basis.
Tuition and mandatory fees are waived, with the exception of the undergraduate book rental fee and applicable health insurance fees.
Employees may take courses at any of the 17 constituent UNC campuses, provided participation does not interfere with normal employment obligations and receives approval from both the employee’s supervisor and HR.
New Cloud Based Enhancements to the Tuition Waiver Process
HR and IT have introduced system improvements that make the Tuition Waiver request process significantly smoother and less time consuming:
✅ Automatic Course Population in the Tuition Waiver Form
Employees taking classes at WCU will now see their registered courses automatically populate within the Tuition Waiver form. Rather than manually entering course numbers, titles, and details, employees simply select which registered courses they wish to waive.
✅ Simplified Supervisor Approval
Supervisors can now approve Tuition Waiver submissions directly through:
- Email, or
- Microsoft Teams Approvals
This eliminates the need for printed forms or manual signatures and greatly improves turnaround time.
Learn More
Applications open in:
- July for Fall
- November for Spring
- April for Summer
For complete details on Tuition Assistance, visit WCU Benefits Summary or contact Savannah Wells at wellss@email.wcu.edu or 828-227-3095.