UNO's Office of Financial Support and Scholarships offers tuition assistance programs for qualifying students. Recipients may receive a partial or 100% tuition remission.
First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver
Employee and Dependent Scholarship
Nebraska Veterans' Tuition Waiver
First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver
Overview
Eligibility Criteria
Additional Information
How to Apply
Under the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act*, law enforcement officers, professional firefighters, and their qualifying child(ren) may qualify for a tuition waiver of up to 100% of their resident tuition charges after subtracting awarded federal and state financial aid, grants, and scholarships. Students may receive the tuition waiver for up to five (5) consecutive years so long as such student continues to be eligible for participation.
The Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver:
- Covers resident tuition charges only; all other educationally related expenses, including fees, books/supplies, and housing are the responsibility of the student.
- Applies after subtracting all awarded federal and state financial aid, grants, and scholarships.
- Cannot be used in conjunction with other tuition remission scholarships or tuition assistance programs where the benefit exceeds the cost of tuition charges. This includes, but is not limited to, the Presidential Scholars Program, Regents Scholarship, Goodrich Scholarship Program, Urban Health Opportunities Program (UHOP), Employee and Dependent Scholarship Program, Nebraska Veteran Dependent Waiver, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant (FSEOG), Nebraska Opportunity Grant, University Assistance Grant, University Tuition Grant, and the University Tuition Assistance Grant.
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible first responders applying for this tuition waiver must: (1) be properly admitted to the University of Nebraska, (2) be pursuing a baccalaureate degree in an eligible program, (3) be in "good academic standing" at the university, and (4) meet one of the definitions listed below:
- A law enforcement officer, for the purposes of this program, is defined according to Neb. Rev. Stat. § 81-1401 as any Nebraska resident who has successfully completed an entry-level law enforcement certification from a training academy and who is responsible for the prevention or detection of crime or the enforcement of the penal, traffic, or highway laws of the State of Nebraska or any political subdivision of the state for more than 100 hours per year and who is authorized by law to make arrests.
- A professional firefighter, for the purposes of this program, is defined as any Nebraska resident who is a firefighter or firefighter-paramedic as a full-time career and who is a member of a paid fire department of a municipality, including a municipality having a home rule charter or a municipal authority created pursuant to a home rule charter that has its own paid fire department; a rural or suburban fire protection district; or a fire service providing protection to state military installations.
- An eligible disabled person, for the purposes of this program, is an individual who was employed as a first responder but who, due to injury or illness that resulted from or is connected to such employment, is no longer able to maintain employment as a first responder.
A qualifying child applying for this tuition waiver must: (1) be properly admitted to the University of Nebraska, (2) be pursuing a baccalaureate degree, (3) be meeting Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy standards, and (4) meet one of the definitions listed below:
- A legal dependent, for the purposes of this program, is any person that meets the definition of a “dependent student” as determined by the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA®) form, and who has at least one parent or legal guardian that qualifies as a first responder or an eligible disabled person under the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act.
- A nondependent child of a first responder or an eligible disabled person who is a legal dependent of another parent. To be considered a qualifying child under this subdivision, the maternity or paternity of the child shall be verified through a birth certificate or other means approved by the admission or financial aid office of the state university, state college, or community college.
Current eligible programs at UNO for Law Enforcement Officers (as defined above) include: Criminology and Criminal Justice, Emergency Management, Foreign Languages and Literature (Spanish Concentration), Multidisciplinary Studies (Criminology and Criminal Justice Concentration), Multidisciplinary Studies (Emergency Management Concentration), Psychology (Applied Behavior Analysis Concentration), Psychology (Forensic Psychology Concentration).
Current eligible programs at UNO for Professional Firefighters (as defined above) include: Bioinformatics, Biology, Biomechanics, Chemistry, Criminology and Criminal Justice, Emergency Management, Foreign Languages and Literature (Spanish Concentration), Kinesiology, Medical Humanities, Molecular and Biomedical Biology, Multidisciplinary Studies (Biology Concentration), Multidisciplinary Studies (Criminology and Criminal Justice Concentration), Multidisciplinary Studies (Emergency Management Concentration), Neuroscience, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Physics, Public Health.
Highly specific programs will be considered on an individual basis if there is a demonstrated connection to the First Responders' work assignment, for example members of aviation units pursuing appropriate tracks within the BS in Aviation, or members of public affairs units pursuing the BS in Journalism and Media Communication.
Additional Information
Although there is no minimum enrollment requirement for the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver, there is a limit on the number of years a student can receive the tuition waiver. Students may only receive the tuition waiver for up to five (5) consecutive years.
Provided the recipient continues to be eligible for the tuition waiver, an application, once approved, is good for one academic year. Students may use the tuition waiver in the fall, spring, and summer semesters.
It is the responsibility of the student to notify the Office of Financial Support & Scholarships at UNO of any changes that may affect their eligibility for a tuition waiver under the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Act. Further, the Institution (UNO) may revoke the tuition waiver immediately if the Tuition Waiver Recipient provided or provides false information to the Institution during the application, contract process, or during the course of the Tuition Waiver Recipient's studies at the Institution.
How to Apply
Students seeking the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver are required to apply annually to determine continued eligibility. All required materials must be submitted before the application is considered complete.
Deadlines to apply: December 1 for fall, May 1 for spring, August 1 for summer.
Admitted students applying for this waiver are required to complete the following:
- Submit the Nebraska First Responder Recruitment and Retention Waiver online application.
- File documentation each year with the Department of Revenue (DOR) verifying the requirements for Nebraska residency and status as a first responder or an eligible disabled person.
- Provide verification of satisfactory performance by the first responder or eligible disabled person:
- Law enforcement officers and their qualifying child(ren) satisfy this requirement by completing the Department of Revenue form as it confirms the officer possess a law enforcement officer certificate under sections 81-1401 to 81-1414.19.
- Professional firefighters and their qualifying child(ren) must submit the Certification of Satisfactory Performance form (available to download in MavLINK) as completed by the fire chief of such professional firefighter's fire department.
- Eligible disabled persons and their qualifying child(ren) must submit the Certification of Satisfactory Performance form (available to download in MavLINK) as completed by the eligible disabled person's former superior officer.
- In addition to the above requirements, qualifying children must:
- File a FAFSA form (UNO School Code: 002554)
- Sign an agreement attesting that they understand they are required to stay in the State of Nebraska and file proper state tax returns for a minimum of 5 years after they receive each tuition waiver.
NOTE: THE RULES AND REGULATIONS GOVERNING THE FIRST RESPONDER RECRUITMENT AND RETENTION WAIVER ARE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITH LITTLE OR NO NOTICE IN RESPONSE TO NEBRASKA LAW. FILLING OUT THE APPLICATION DOES NOT MAKE YOU ELIGIBLE FOR A TUITION WAIVER UNDER THE ACT. CRITERIA FOR ELIGIBILITY WILL BE DETERMINED BY THE UNIVERSITY OF NEBRASKA IN ACCORDANCE WITH NEBRASKA LAW.
*Neb. Rev. Stat. §§ 85-2609 to 85-2625 (LB608 – Sections 2 to 18, September 3, 2025)
Nebraska Legacy Scholarships
Awards cover the difference between Resident and Non-resident, or OUR, tuition.
Criteria include: (1) Non-resident students, (2) child of University of Nebraska System graduates, (3) rank in the upper one-third of their graduating high school class OR have a minimum composite ACT score of 24 (or equivalent on the SAT).
Renewable for up to three additional years.
To apply, complete the UNO Scholarship application in MavLINK.
Back to topEmployee and Dependent Scholarship
The Employee and Dependent Scholarship program is available to eligible full-time employees and their spouse/dependents for a maximum total of 15 credit hours per academic year.
For more information, including how to allocate your resources, visit the UNO Human Resources page.
Nebraska Veterans' Tuition Waiver
The Nebraska Veterans' Tuition Waiver program is available to dependents of eligible veterans that may be used to waive up to 100% of a student’s tuition charges and tuition-related fees.
For more information, visit the Nebraska Department of Veterans' Affairs website.