Tuition Exchange Program
Procedure Administrator: Chief Human Resources Officer Authority: N.J.S.A. 18A-64-8
Effective Date: November 17, 2015; August 15, 2019; October 8, 2020; September 3, 2021; September 15, 2025
Index Cross-References:
Procedure File Number: 6165
Approved By: Dr. Joe Bertolino, President
The Stockton University Tuition Exchange (Tuition Exchange) Program provides eligible dependents of eligible full-time faculty and staff with the ability to exchange access to scholarships with participating Tuition Exchange (TE) Program institutions. The Tuition Exchange Inc. (TE, Inc.) facilitates a scholarship exchange program that includes more than 600 colleges and universities worldwide, including public as well as private institutions, research and doctoral universities, liberal arts colleges, and comprehensive universities.
Tuition Exchange is not a Stockton benefit that is automatically awarded. Each member institution must maintain a reasonable balance between "imports" (students attending the institution as part of the TE Program) and "exports" (eligible dependents enrolled at another institution as part of the TE Program). Each member institution sets its own eligibility standards and determines how many TE scholarships will be offered annually. Neither the acceptance at member institutions nor the award of Tuition Exchange is guaranteed under the TE Program. For this reason, employees should view TE as one of their many options in funding their dependent student’s education, rather than their sole option.
I. EXPORT PROCEDURE AND ELIGIBILITY:
All full-time staff and faculty who have completed one full year of service may apply to participate in the program. In cases where both parents are eligible employees, they cannot combine scholarships.
Tuition eligibility is limited to dependent unmarried children, including adopted children and stepchildren, who have not earned an undergraduate degree. They
must meet the federal government's definition of “dependent” as used when applying for financial aid, which includes, among other criteria, that the proposed
student must be under age 24 and unmarried. Recipients must also be dependent upon the eligible employee for support as defined by the Internal Revenue Service Code, i.e. biological, adopted, stepchild, legal ward or joint custody of a child. The Office of Human Resources (OHR) will verify dependency status for employees who have been selected into the program. In addition, the recipient must meet the following criteria:
• Meet the admission requirements of the importing college/university;
• Be a candidate for first undergraduate degree; and
• Be a full-time, undergraduate, matriculated student at the importing college/university; and
• Must apply by submission deadline published on OHR website; and
• Pay an export fee annually set by Tuition Exchange collected through the Bursar’s Office.
Only one dependent per employee is eligible to receive the Tuition Exchange scholarship and the scholarship is not transferable to another dependent.
II. SCHOLARSHIP COVERAGE:
Tuition Exchange scholarships are set at a maximum of 8 semesters per eligible applicant and are renewable each year. Scholarship recipients must remain in
good standing (i.e., not on probation or suspension) at all times with the institutions that they are attending in order to retain the scholarship.
Tuition Exchange scholarships are for tuition only and do not cover room and board, books, or other fees. The amount of tuition covered is set by the importing
school.
III. NUMBER OF AVAILABLE SCHOLARSHIPS:
The Tuition Exchange program is based on an import/export exchange. In order for Stockton University to send our employees’ dependents to participating colleges and universities, we must maintain a balance of imports to these exports. Each fall, the Tuition Exchange Administration calculates each institution’s balance and determines if the institution is in “good standing,” “on alert,” or “on restriction.” Stockton University reserves the right each year to increase or decrease the number of participants to maintain balance and prevent placing the University on alert or on restricted status. Each fiscal year Stockton University sets the number of Tuition Exchange exports in the program to align with Stockton’s operational budget to ensure the number of students enrolled in the program does not exceed cap limits set by the Tuition Exchange Administration. The number of available scholarships will be published on the OHR Tuition Exchange website for the current cycle.
The Office of Human Resources, determines eligibility, according to the following selection process:
• If the number of applicants is equal to or less than the number of Tuition Exchange scholarships available, each eligible dependent will be given the opportunity to apply for a Tuition Exchange scholarship at member institutions. The receiving Tuition Exchange institution determines how many Tuition Exchange scholarships it will award and whether to accept a student based on its admissions criteria.
• If the number of applicants exceeds the number of Tuition Exchange scholarships available, recipients will be selected as follows: two-thirds (2/3) of the scholarships will be selected based on length of service (University seniority) at Stockton, with this number to be evenly divided between the faculty and staff to the extent that the application representation allows. Seniority is determined though OHR based on the employees hire date.
• The remaining one-third (1/3) of the scholarships will be determined based on a lottery of all remaining applicants. The lottery process will be conducted using a
random name generator software to ensure that the selection process is unbiased. Notice of the lottery will be sent to applicants via email and posted on the OHR Tuition Exchange website.
• A waitlist will from those applicants not selected. If an applicant has been selected to receive a Tuition Exchange scholarship and subsequently chooses not to participate in the program, the scholarship may be offered to another applicant by seniority or lottery if the TE program is still accepting new students. if the TE program is still accepting new students.
IV. APPLICATION PROCESS:
Applications for a Tuition Exchange scholarship must be submitted through the online Tuition Exchange Portal no later than September 15th of the year prior to
the student’s intended enrollment at any participating institution. Determination and notification of eligibility will be made by September 30th.
V. IMPORT PROCEDURE:
Tuition Exchange applications are reviewed in date order in the Tuition Exchange Portal and approved for the number of allotted import spots for the current fiscal year. The number of import spots is determined each fiscal year in conjunction with Stockton’s operating budget . The Office of Admissions updates the CRM system during the recruitment cycle to track the applications received for Tuition Exchange eligible applicants. All approved applicants are required to live on campus until graduation and maintain a 3.0 cumulative GPA and full-time enrollment.
Stockton University’s participation in the Tuition Exchange Program is subject to approval by the Tuition Exchange Administration and can be revoked at any time.
VI. LIMITATIONS:
LEAVE OF ABSENCE: Unless prohibited by law, participation in the Tuition Exchange Program will cease during an employee’s leave of absence that is one month or longer in duration. If an employee is placed on unpaid leave for failure to comply with University policies or procedures, then the employee will be ineligible
for the Tuition Exchange Program and tuition exchange benefits will be immediately suspended and the employee will be responsible for pro-rated tuition costs fees.
SEPERATED EMPLOYEES: If an employee leaves Stockton University, other than because of death, and has an eligible dependent student on a TE scholarship, the
award expires at the end of the semester in which the dependent is enrolled, so long as the employee was not on unpaid leave referenced above.
DEATH OF AN EMPLOYEE: If an employee dies and has a dependent on a TE scholarship, the dependent is eligible for up to the maximum of 8 semesters as long as all other requirements are met.
Review History:
Procedure Administrator 07/11/2025
Divisional Executive 08/05/2025
General Counsel 08/25/2025
Senior Leadership 09/11/2025
President 09/15/2025
