As an MSU benefits-eligible support staff employee, you have access to Educational Assistance. This benefit offers financial assistance towards your professional development after you’ve worked at MSU for an equivalent of 12 full-time service months. If you work less than full-time, the benefit is prorated based on your employment percentage.

You may receive up to $900 per year to use towards registration costs for a variety of non-credit learning opportunities, including trainings, seminars, workshops, conferences and courses. You will need to submit an Educational Assistance application to request financial assistance. You can access the Educational Assistance application in the EBS Portal under the My Career and Training tab. The learning opportunity must be considered job-related and from an approved institution/program to be approved for financial assistance.

You will need to upload two documents to your Educational Assistance application to receive reimbursement:

1. Proof of Payment: The registration costs will need to be paid up front by either you or your department before you receive reimbursement. Make sure to submit proof of payment that clearly shows whether you or your department should be receiving the reimbursement. If you paid for the learning opportunity, you should upload a receipt that clearly shows you paid. If your department paid, you will need to obtain either the procurement card statement or the department operating statement (this would depend on the method of payment that was used) from your department’s fiscal officer.
2. Proof of Attendance/Completion: There are a variety of documents that you can upload for proof of attendance, including a certificate of completion, formal email/letter of congratulations for completing or attending the learning opportunity, or confirmation of your registration if no other documentation was issued/provided.

PLEASE NOTE: Courses that you register for through the Courses for MSU Employees application in the EBS portal, such as Organization and Professional Development courses or MSU IT courses, do not require an Educational Assistance application. For these courses, you just need to select Educational Assistance as your form of payment when you register.

The Educational Assistance benefit also offers financial assistance for credit courses, which you can learn more about in this previous blog post. Find detailed information about Educational Assistance on the HR website. Questions? We’re happy to help! Contact the HR Solutions Center at SolutionsCenter@hr.msu.edu or 517-353-4434.