11.03.02 – Undergraduate Tuition Rebate
Section: Funding and Budgets
Area: Tuition and Fees
I. PURPOSE AND SCOPE
This MAPP establishes policies and procedures to be followed by the University of Houston (UH) with respect to rebating tuition to undergraduate students who comply with Texas Education Code, Section 54.0065 (Tuition Rebate for Certain Undergraduates).
II. POLICY STATEMENT
As a Texas public baccalaureate-granting general academic university, UH is required to offer rebates to eligible students. UH shall rebate up to $1,000, pursuant to the procedures described herein, to those eligible undergraduate students who meet the criteria established within Section 54.0065 of the Texas Education Code.
III. DEFINITIONS
Eligible Students: To be eligible for rebates under this program, students must meet all of the following conditions:
A. They must have enrolled for the first time in an institution of higher education in the fall 1997 semester or later;
B. They must be requesting a rebate for work related to a first baccalaureate degree received from a general academic teaching institution;
C. They must have been a resident of Texas and have been entitled to pay resident tuition at all times while pursuing the degree;
D. If enrolled for the first time in fall 2005 or later, they must have graduated within four calendar years for a four-year degree or within five calendar years for a five-year degree if the degree is in architecture, engineering, or any other program determined by the Coordinating Board to require more than four years to complete; and
E. They must have attempted no more than three hours in excess of the minimum number of semester credit hours required to complete the degree under the catalog under which they were graduated.
1. Hours attempted include transfer credits; course credit earned exclusively by examination (except that for the purposes of this program, only the number of semester credit hours earned exclusively by examination in excess of nine semester credit hours is treated as hours attempted); courses that are dropped after the official census date; optional internship and cooperative education courses, and repeated courses. If a student chooses to complete the requirements for a teaching certificate, the minimum number of credit hours required for the degree, for purposes of the $1,000 tuition rebate, should be the minimum number of credit hours in which it is possible to satisfy the requirements of both the baccalaureate degree and the teaching certificate.
2. Hours attempted do not include course credit, other than course credit earned exclusively by examination, that is earned before graduating from high school. Course credit that is earned to satisfy requirements for a Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) program but that is not required to complete the program are excluded from the count. Courses dropped for reasons that are determined by the institution to be totally beyond the control of the student shall not be counted.
IV. AMOUNT OF TUITION REBATES
A. The amount of tuition to be rebated to a student under this program is $1,000, unless the total amount of undergraduate tuition paid by the student to the institution awarding the degree was less than $1,000, in which event the amount of tuition to be rebated is an amount equal to the amount of undergraduate tuition paid by the student to the institution.
B. A student who paid the institution awarding the degree an amount of undergraduate tuition less than $1,000 may qualify for an increase in the amount of the rebate, not to exceed a total rebate of $1,000, for any amount of undergraduate tuition the student paid to other Texas public institutions of higher education by providing the institution awarding the degree with proof of the total amount of that tuition paid to other institutions.
C. Tuition rebates shall be reduced by the amount of any outstanding student loan, including an emergency loan, owed to or guaranteed by this state, including the Texas Guaranteed Student Loan Corporation. If a student has more than one outstanding student loan, the institution shall apply the amount of the rebate to the loans as directed by the student. If the student fails to provide timely instructions on the application of the amount, the institution shall apply the amount of the rebate to retire the loans with the highest interest rates first. If the amount of the rebate exceeds the amount of the loan indebtedness, the institution shall pay the student the excess amount.
V. UH RESPONSIBILITIES
A. The university must notify first-time freshman about the tuition rebate program. A notice in the institution's official catalog is one acceptable form of notice.
B. If requested by potentially eligible students, UH will provide these students opportunities to enroll during each fall and spring semester in the equivalent of at least 12 semester credit hours that apply toward their degrees. Institutions are not required to provide students with the opportunity to enroll in specific courses or specific sections. The requirement may be met by allowing substitutions for required courses or by allowing concurrent enrollment in courses from another institution, so long as the courses are taught on the student's home campus and the student incurs no financial penalty.
C. Provide students with appropriate forms and instructions for requesting tuition reimbursement at the time that students apply for baccalaureate degrees.
D. Provide tuition rebates to qualified students within 60 days after their degree is posted or provide the student with a statement explaining the reason they are ineligible for the rebate.
E. Disputes related to lower division credit transfer should be resolved in accordance with the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Rules, Chapter 4, Section 4.27 of the Texas Administrative Code, Title 19 (relating to Transfer of Lower Division Course Credit). Students who do not meet the eligibility requirements of Section III item D of this policy (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board Rules §13.82(4) (relating to Eligible Students) because of hardship conditions may attach to their rebate request documentation verifying any of the following hardship conditions:
(1) severe illness or other debilitating condition that may have affected the student's academic performance;
(2) an indication that the student was responsible for the care of a sick, injured, or needy person and that the student's provision of care may have affected their academic performance; or
(3) performance of active duty military service.
Disputes related to other academic issues should be directed to, in the following order of progression, the Dean of the college and the Office of the Senior Vice President for Academic Affairs and Provost.
VI. STUDENT RESPONSIBILITIES
A. Students desiring to qualify for tuition rebates are responsible for complying with all university rules and regulations related to administration of the program.
B. Students desiring to qualify for tuition rebates are solely responsible for enrolling only in courses that will qualify them for the rebates.
C. A student who has transferred from another institution of higher education is responsible for providing to UH official transcripts from all institutions attended by the student.
D. Students must apply for the rebate prior to graduation using forms provided by UH. The deadline to apply for the rebate is the closing date of the semester in which the student receives the baccalaureate degree. Students must keep the institution informed of their addresses for at least 60 days after their graduation date.
VII. FUNDING SOURCE
Tuition rebates shall be paid from a cost center that contains a fund value of 1xxx, which will be funded centrally from tuition revenue. The enabling legislation provides that the Legislature shall account in the General Appropriations Act for the rebates in a way that provides a corresponding increase in the general revenue funds appropriated to the institution provided the university has included its funding request in the Legislative Appropriations Request process.
REFERENCES
UH Tuition Rebate Information Web Site (Includes Student Checklist and Request for Tuition Rebate Forms)
Texas Education Code, Chapter 54.0065
Issued: 03/15/2002
Last Reviewed/Revised: 05/23/2024
Responsible Office(s): Finance; Academic Affairs