Waivers, Exemptions, Reductions
Please review the following overview of tuition waivers and reductions currently implemented by the University of Washington.
Each waiver item includes links to the authorizing state statute in the Revised Code of Washington (RCW), which outlines some requirements for receiving a tuition waiver. Additional requirements and limitations can be found in relevant sections of the Washington Administrative Code (WAC), UW Administrative Policy Statements (APS), and other resources.
Many of these waivers are applied only in specific situations for students who meet specific eligibility requirements and therefore do not have formal application processes. As applicable, contact information is provided for each waiver.
Please note that the information below describes formal tuition waivers, exemptions, and reductions as required or allowed by law. It does not include scholarships, fellowships, grant-funded or departmental funding opportunities, and similar.
Washington State Authorization
The University’s Board of Regents is authorized to grant tuition and fee waivers to students pursuant to RCW 28B.15.910 and the laws identified therein. A number of these statutes authorize, but do not require, the Board of Regents to grant waivers for different categories of students and provide for waivers of different fees.
For the permissive waivers, that are authorized but not required by state law, the Board of Regents must affirmatively act to implement the legislature’s grant of authority under each individual law. These permissive waivers can be found in WAC 478-161-020.
Certain waivers of tuition or fees are required by Washington State laws for specific student populations and do not require the Board of Regents’ action to implement. The Office of the University Registrar and the Office of Planning & Budgeting coordinate updates to this page in response to changes in state law or implementation of waivers.
There are two ways to contact the Residency Team at UW Seattle. Generally, staff respond to email inquiries within five (5) business days. For pressing or complicated advising questions, please schedule an appointment.
Available Tuition Waivers
Available Tuition Waivers
TAs/RAs, Faculty and Staff and their Spouses and Dependents, and Immigrant Refugees and their Spouses and Dependents
The University is authorized to waive the non-resident portion of tuition for a person residing in the State of Washington who:
- Holds a graduate service appointment such as a teaching assistant or research assistant.
- is employed by an academic department for not less than twenty hours per week.
- Is a University employee who is recruited for employment from another state to work at the University or that employee’s spouse or dependent child.
- Is an immigrant refugee or the spouse or child of a refugee.
Review WAC 478-161-020 for restrictions on duration of eligibility for faculty, staff, and refugees.
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.014
Persons Holding Graduate Service Appointments
As part of the compensation package for resident students that work as teaching assistants (TAs) and research assistants (RAs), all or part of the operating fee component of tuition is waived. The University fulfills its research mission with the innovation and work of its graduate students and considers waiving all or portion of their tuition a critical part of their compensation for their service to the University.
Review RCW 28B.15.014 for exemptions from the non-resident tuition differential.
TAs & RAs
- Employment Unit
- Academic Department
- Graduate School – Find Funding for Grad School
Location: G-1 Communications
Email: gradappt@uw.edu
Phone: 206-543-7152
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.615
The University’s School of Pharmacy, School of Dentistry, School of Medicine, and School of Law students are sometimes required by their programs to take over 18 credits in a given quarter. The University is authorized to exempt these students from the normal mandatory tuition surcharge for additional credits.
Contact your admitting academic unit for more information.
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.100
In an interstate agreement, the University of Washington serves as the medical school for students from Washington, Wyoming, Alaska, Montana, and Idaho (WWAMI). Students from these states pay resident tuition rates and their home states pay the balance of the cost of instruction directly to the University’s School of Medicine.
UW School of Medicine – WWAMI
Office of Academic Affairs
A300 Health Sciences
206-543-5560
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.225
In certain programs, University students studying abroad are matched by their host institution sending a student to this University. Each student involved in these exchanges can benefit from paying resident tuition rates while each institution supports the visiting student by subsidizing the non-resident tuition differential. The University of Washington is authorized to support up to 100 students with this waiver.
Study Abroad – Visiting Exchange Students
Location: 453 Schmitz Hall
Email: studyabroad@uw.edu
Phone: 206-543-9272
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.555 through RCW 28B.15.556
- The University may waive all or a portion of tuition and fees for an “eligible veteran or national guard member” who meets certain criteria of service. WAC 478-161-020 further limits eligibility, credit limits, and eligibility to graduate students. Check for required Veterans Education Benefits forms.
- The University is required to waive all tuition and fees for children, spouses, and domestic partners, of an “eligible veteran or national guard member” who became totally disabled as a result of their service, lost their life while engaged in active service, or is determined by the federal government to be a prisoner of war or missing in action. Check for required Veterans Education Benefits forms.
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.621 Sections (2) and (4)
The University withholds a certain percentage of gross tuition operating fee revenue to distribute as tuition waivers for low-income and outstanding students at the graduate and undergraduate levels. These amounts are distributed through the aid awarding process and do not require a separate application.
Authorizing Statute: RCW 28B.15.740
RCW 28B.15.915 gives the Board of Regents the authority to waive all or a portion of operating fees, but the University may not use state general fund support to do so. The use of that authority has been limited to creating specific waiver programs to respond to academic program needs. There is no mechanism to request a waiver of tuition for individual circumstances.