Maryland Tuition Waivers for Homeless Youth and Foster Care Recipients

• Your approved tuition waiver will apply to tuition and fees (including admissions application and diploma fees) only.

• If you are determined to be eligible for one of the tuition waivers, you may continue to be exempt from paying tuition and fees until 10 years after first enrolling as a candidate for an associate, bachelor's, or a vocational certificate at a Maryland public institution of higher education, or until you are awarded a bachelor's degree.

• You are eligible to use your approved tuition waiver for courses taken in the summer, fall, or spring terms here at UMGC.

• Once you have submitted your application, the UMGC Homeless and Foster Student Liaison or a member of the application review committee will review the information you submitted. You will be contacted by phone or email within 10 business days of the submission of your application to determine next steps.

• If your application is approved, you will work with a member of the team to discuss all your financial aid options in addition to the tuition waiver.

• If your application is denied, you will be notified of the reason for denial. If you feel your application was denied in error, you may submit a written appeal providing additional information and/or documentation. The appeal statement and documents must be emailed to FCHYliaison@umgc.edu, and will be reviewed within 30 days of submission of the appeal.

You can send an email to the UMGC Homeless and Foster Student Liaison at FCHYliaison@umgc.edu.

Approved officials include:

• The director or designee of a governmental or nonprofit entity that receives public or private funding to provide services to persons experiencing homelessness

• A local educational agency liaison for children and youth experiencing homelessness designated in accordance with the federal McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act

• A school counselor

• A school social worker

• The director or a designee of a federal or state outreach and student services program designed to identify and provide services to economically disadvantaged individuals

• The director or a designee of a federal or state program for providing early awareness and readiness for undergraduate programs

• The director or designee of the director of a financial aid department at the public institution of higher education in which the youth in enrolled or seeks to enroll

UMGC will accept another school's determination of your eligibility for the Homeless Youth Tuition Waiver, but you will need to do the following in order to begin receiving the waiver at UMGC:

1. Submit the application form on our website for reporting purposes.
2. Submit a request to the institution that first approved you for the waiver asking them to provide written confirmation to UMGC of your waiver eligibility at that school, including the date that you first received the waiver. The school may send their written confirmation to FCHYLiaison@umgc.edu.

No, only Maryland foster care recipients are eligible for the Maryland Foster Care Tuition Waiver. However, you may be eligible for other types of financial assistance provided by your state. We recommend you contact the Department of Human Services in the state in which you were a foster care recipient to ask about potential financial assistance programs for education costs.