Article 18 Section 4. Tuition/Training Reimbursement

A. In General

Those agencies that have tuition reimbursement shall continue their current policy and practice, contingent on available funding.

An employee seeking tuition reimbursement shall submit a written request stating the course and the cost of tuition. The level of reimbursement per credit shall be limited to the per credit charge at the University of Maryland, College Park for graduate and undergraduate courses. All courses that are "job related" are eligible for reimbursement. The term "job-related" includes preparation for potential promotion, as well as, improvement in currently utilized skills and knowledge. Employees may request reimbursement in accordance with the employing department’s policies and procedures.

B. Reimbursement for Tuition or Training Fees for Job-Related Classes or Training for Members of Bargaining Unit G

Employees in bargaining unit G are eligible to receive up to $500 in tuition or training reimbursement for job-related classes or training for the duration of this Agreement; specifically, July 1, 2018 through June 30, 2019 for Fiscal Year 2019, during the period July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2020 for Fiscal Year 2020, and lastly, during the first six months of Fiscal Year 2021, the period July 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020 when this Agreement ends.  This reimbursement is in addition to any other tuition reimbursement program that may be in effect in an agency.

In order to be entitled to receive reimbursement, an eligible employee will be required to submit a request for approval to take the training, along with a copy of the course description to the employee’s Human Resources (HR) Director no later than 15 days prior to the training.  The HR Director (or designee) will determine whether the class or training is deemed job-related, and therefore, eligible for reimbursement. 

Once the employee receives approval to take the class or training, in order to receive reimbursement, the employee must submit documentation showing:

1)      the satisfactory completion of the course or training, and

2)      an original receipt from the entity providing the training clearly showing the cost for the class or training and establishing that the cost for the class or training was paid in full.

Satisfactory completion is deemed a C or better for graded classes or a “pass” for pass/fail classes.  Requests for reimbursement must be submitted to the appropriate agency fiscal officers no later than 30 days after the completion of the class.

In the event that the HR Director or designee determines that the class or training is not job related, the employee may seek reconsideration of this decision by submitting the request to the Executive Director of the Office of Personnel Services and Benefits, Department of Budget and Management.