Select STEM Waiver

Students enrolled at UF and other SUS institutions may receive a 50 percent discount waiver for tuition and applicable fees for upper-level classes required in select STEM programs, per Florida Senate Bill 1261: Higher Education. The waiver applies to eligible courses in the fall, spring and summer semesters. There is no application for the waiver. If students meet the eligibility criteria the waiver will be automatically applied.

Eligible Students

• Is a resident for tuition purposes
• Has earned at least 60 semester credit hours towards a baccalaureate degree within two academic years after initial enrollment at a Florida public postsecondary institution.

• Initial enrollment will use the same definition used to define FTIC, which begins with the first registration after earning a high school diploma.
• The 60 credit hours must be earned/granted at a Florida public postsecondary institution.
• High school dual-enrollment credits earned at a Florida public postsecondary institution count toward the 60-credit hour requirement if the student begins initial enrollment at a Florida public postsecondary institution.

• Enrolls and is accepted into one of eight Programs of Strategic Emphasis as adopted by the Board of Governors as their primary major. The Board of Governors shall adopt eight Programs of Strategic Emphasis in science, technology, engineering, or math for which a student may be eligible to receive the fifty percent tuition discount waiver authorized by this subsection. The programs identified by the board must reflect the priorities of the state and be offered at most state universities.

Eligible UF Majors

At UF, there are seven course disciplines eligible for the fifty percent discount waiver as defined by the Board of Governors and designate by specific by CIP (Classification of Instructional Program Codes ). The eligible major must be the student’s primary major. These majors will be re-evaluated annually by the Florida Board of Governors. Students in market rate or self-supporting programs are not eligible for the fifty percent discount waiver.

The eight selected programs in science, technology, engineering, or math for the 2023-24 academic year are:

The two selected programs in the critical workforce gap analysis category for the 2023-24 academic year are:

The two selected state-approved teacher preparation programs for the 2023-24 academic year are:

Eligible Classes

• Upper-division courses required to complete the primary major, including required electives, and required courses offered by other departments, for up to 110 percent of the number of credit hours required to complete the primary major. The fifty percent discount waiver does not apply to courses that are not required for the degree program.
  • An upper-division course is defined as a 3,000- or 4,000-level course required for the degree using the common course numbering designation.
  • An equivalent course is defined as a 3,000- or 4,000-level course required for the degree using the common course numbering designations.
  • The 110 percent will be calculated in the same way as other existing waivers. For example, 110% of total degree hours.
• Eligible courses must be taken by a student during the same semester.
  • In each term, the tuition and fees for all eligible upper-division courses will be added together and then divided by 2. This calculation results in the amount that should be waived, which equals fifty percent of the tuition and fees for the eligible upper-division courses.

What if students change their major?

Student eligibility will be assessed at the beginning of each term. Major changes made after that time will affect the student's eligibility for the following term.