OPM is partnering with colleges and universities as a part of the continuing efforts to provide higher educational opportunities to the Federal workforce by providing current Federal employees with the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education at reduced tuition rates. Some of the agreements extend the benefits to spouses and legal dependents.
Participating Colleges for Dependents
If you’re looking for college options for the employee or spouse, see the longer complete list on the website. –>Partner Colleges
Central Michigan University
Benefit: 15% discount. The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: All Federal Employees, Spouses and Dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online, Face-to-Face, and Hybrid
Website: Central Michigan University Federal Portal
Admissions Contact:
Phone: (877) 268-4636
Fax: (989) 774-1998
Email: cmuglobal@cmich.edu
Mailing Address:
Central Michigan University
Global Campus
802 Industrial Drive
Champlain College
Benefit: 100% Online Undergraduate and Graduate Programs. No program exclusions. Up to 50% off standard tuition, making online tuition $265/undergraduate credit and $398/graduate credit. The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: Employee, Spouse, Domestic Partners, and Adult Dependents (age 23-26)
Online/On-Campus: Online
Website: Champlain College Federal Portal
Admissions Contact:
Phone: (877) 887-3960
Drexel University Online
Benefit: The tuition will be discounted 10 to 40%, depending on the program.
The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: Federal Government employees and their spouses and dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online
Website: https://online.drexel.edu/opm
Admissions Contact:
Email: https://online.drexel.edu/online-degrees/apply.aspx
Phone: (877) 215-0009
Park University
Benefit: A 16% discount off normal undergraduate tuition, which is the same rate as our military veteran rate. A 12% discount off normal graduate tuition, which is the same as our military veteran rate. The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: Federal employees, their spouses and legal dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online, Face-to-Face, and Hybrid
Website: Park University Federal Portal
Admissions Contact:
Email: admissions@park.edu
Phone: (888) 319-9522
Penn State University World Campus
Benefit: 5% tuition reduction on competitive Penn State World Campus tuition rates, with no program exclusions or out-of-state rates. The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: Federal employees, their spouses and legal dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online, hybrid
Website: Penn State World Campus Federal Portal
Admissions Contact:
Contact Form: http://www.worldcampus.psu.edu/request-information
Address: The Pennsylvania State University
128 Outreach Building
University Park PA 16802
Email: pennstateonline@psu.edu
Phone: Toll Free: (800) 252-3592; Local/International: (814) 865-5403
Fax: (814) 865-3290
Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
Benefit: 10% Tuition Grant, making ONLINE tuition range $405- $571.50. Online courses range in credit hours from 1-4. ON CAMPUS tuition range $310.50 – $711.00. On campus courses range in credit hours from 1-5. The application fee will be waived.
Who is eligible: Federal employees, their spouses and legal dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online, On-Campus, Hybrid
Website: St. Mary’s University of Minnesota Federal Portal or FedGovAtSaintMarys.com Phone: (877) 308-9954
Southern New Hampshire University and College for America
Benefit: Online Course-based “Set Path” Programs College for America “Personal Path” Degree Programs 10% tuition discount for Set Path programs and $3,000 per year for Personal Path programs
Who is eligible: Federal employees and their family members. Family members are defined as the following; Spouse, and parents thereof; Sons and daughters, and spouses thereof; Parents, and spouses thereof; Brothers and sisters, and spouses thereof; Grandparents and grandchildren, and spouses thereof;
Online/On-Campus: Online
Website: http://www.snhu.edu
Admissions Contact:
Email: enroll@snhu.edu
Phone: (800) 668-1249
University of Maryland Global Campus (Formerly UMUC)
Benefit: Application fee waiver. 25% discount on out-of-state tuition for most programs, and 5% discount on tuition for graduate specialty programs
Who is eligible: Federal employees, their spouses and legal dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online, hybrid
Website: umgc.edu/fed
Admissions Contact:
Email: fedprogram@umuc.edu
Information Request Form: https://www.umgc.edu/about/federal-government-employees/request-information.cfm
Mailing Address:
3501 University Blvd. East
Adelphi, MD 20783
Utica College
Benefit: As a federal employee, you are eligible for the following benefits when you apply: A 10% tuition reduction; Potential additional tuition discounts for groups; A waived application fee (a savings of $50)
Who is eligible: Federal employees, their spouses and legal dependents
Online/On-Campus: Online
Website: https://landing.online.utica.edu/federalgovernment
Admissions Contact:
Email: uticaonline@utica.edu
Phone: (866) 295-3106 or (315) 732-2640
Special thanks to Jaine S. for bringing this discount to my attention!
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM) leads and serves the Federal Government in enterprise human resources management by delivering policies and services to achieve a trusted, effective civilian workforce. Our Government-wide talent development focus is to ensure Federal employees have access to high-quality talent development opportunities in the identified Government-wide mission-critical occupations and leverage resources to increase impact.
The Chief Human Capital Officers (CHCO) Council and OPM established a joint initiative to address critical skills gaps, and identified the following Government-wide mission-critical occupations: Economists, Human Resources, Cyber security, Auditors, Acquisition and Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM). Additionally, OPM forecasts of future hiring trends suggest that healthcare be included under the STEM workforce. By developing formal relationships with learning institutions, OPM can lead the effort to help agencies address current skill needs.
OPM is partnering with colleges and universities as a part of the continuing efforts to provide higher educational opportunities to the Federal workforce by providing current Federal employees with the opportunity to pursue post-secondary education at reduced tuition rates. This program is a benefit that Federal employees can take advantage of at their own pace to pursue or enhance their higher academic education. Some of the agreements extend the benefits to spouses and legal dependents.
The academic alliances are an additional educational resource for Federal employees and Federal agencies. The alliances address the demand for high-quality learning and development as well as the extremely fast pace of change in the learning industry.
With the endorsement of the CHCO Council, OPM began this leading effort to create relationships with colleges and universities to:
- Address current Government-wide and agency-specific skills gaps
- Support career development for Federal employee
- Provide greater opportunities for Federal employees to obtain college degrees, certificates and/or college credits
- Provide this opportunity with colleges and universities that offer an online component to address our worldwide workforce.
- Provide current college students with a greater understanding of the Federal Government
I am a Federal employee, how do I get started?
For information about the programs, admissions, and contact information for each school, please visit our partners websites listed on the “our partners” tab.
I am a training officer, and my agency would like to host an information session and/or contact the partners about collaboration with our training needs. Can you provide a point of contact?
Please contact our team at learninganddevelopment@opm.gov, and we will provide the points of contact for each academic institution.
Does my agency have to provide tuition reimbursement to participate in this program?
No Agencies have the discretion to offer this program based on their agency training policy. Please contact your Human Resources about your agency’s tuition reimbursement policy.
Information about the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) financial aid is available at https://fafsa.ed.gov/.
I am a former Federal employee who is currently a retiree; do I qualify for this program?
No, this program is only offered to current Federal employees.
