Ph.D. Insurance Scholarship Policy

Policy

Duke University requires that all students have health insurance comparable to the Duke Student Medical Insurance Plan (SMIP). Domestic students have the option to enroll in the Duke SMIP or to waive coverage by providing proof of comparable insurance. International students attending Duke on an F-1 or J-1 visa are required to enroll in the Duke plan. Enrollment into the Student Dental Insurance Plan (SDIP) is available for both domestic and international students. Guidelines for enrollment are available through Student Health..

Duke University requires that all students have health insurance comparable to the Duke Student Medical Insurance Plan (SMIP). Domestic students have the option to enroll in the Duke SMIP or to waive coverage by providing proof of comparable insurance. International students attending Duke on an F-1 or J-1 visa are required to enroll in the Duke plan. Enrollment into the Student Dental Insurance Plan (SDIP) is available for both domestic and international students. Guidelines for enrollment are available through Student Health.

All registered students are expected to enroll prior to the beginning of the plan year, which runs from August 1st to July 31st, through the Gallagher student insurance portal. Policy waiver requests are submitted through the Gallagher portal account with an annual deadline provided by Student Health. Students who do not enroll, or have not provided proof of comparable health insurance coverage to waive the Duke SMIP by the waiver deadline of the plan year will be automatically enrolled after September 15th.

Duke also offers an optional Student Dental Insurance Policy (SDIP) for current students. The Graduate School will pay the individual health and/or dental insurance premium for registered Ph.D. students in years 1-6 who enroll in the Duke plans and for Ph.D. Research Assistants (Job Code 1590) in any year of study. Ph.D. students beyond the 6th year, who are not in their final semester, must be supported as a Research Assistant (Job Code 1590) at the standard Ph.D. stipend rate 100% in either fall or spring, or 50% stipend for both fall and spring, to qualify for a health/dental insurance scholarship from The Graduate School. Note:

If a Ph.D. student beyond the 6th year is supported as a Research Assistant for least 50% of the working days of one month in their final Ph.D. semester, at the standard stipend rate, The Graduate School will cover health/dental premiums for that semester.

Master’s students are eligible to purchase the Duke SMIP and SDIP. However, the Graduate School does not provide insurance scholarships for Master’s students.

The Graduate School will not cover health or dental insurance premiums for any other plan, nor does this benefit have any cash or other substitution value. Students who wish to purchase insurance coverage for dependents may do so at their expense.

General information on both insurance plans can be found at https://gradschool.duke.edu/medical-dental. Additional information concerning plan coverage, contact information, claims submission, and dependent coverage is available through the Duke Student Health Office.

Spring Admissions

Students who matriculate in the spring term are eligible to enroll in the Duke SMIP and SDIP for the seven months remaining in the plan year, which is January 1st – July 31st. The Graduate School will provide prorated scholarships for the insurance premiums of admitted Ph.D. students who do not waive this coverage.

Fall Admissions

For students who arrive early and wish to enroll in SMIP for July, the graduate program’s coordinator should email the insurance team a roster in early June to ensure timely enrollment. The student will have a prorated premium for July coverage, then the full 12-month premium for the academic year, charged to their bursar account. The Graduate School will not cover early enrollment premiums for the month of July.

The insurance provider does not allow students who withdraw from their Ph.D. program after the end of the open enrollment period to waive SMIP/SDIP. These students will retain their insurance coverage for the remainder of the plan year at their own pro-rated expense. Graduate School payment of the SMIP and SDIP premium will continue through the last day of the month during which the withdrawal became effective. The student will be charged for, and expected to pay, the balance of the SMIP and SDIP premiums through their Bursar account, after withdrawal.

Ph.D. students who take a leave of absence will continue to receive a Graduate School insurance scholarship to cover the individual Duke SMIP and/or SDIP through the remainder of the plan year only if they were eligible for the Graduate School insurance payment during the same plan year. Students with questions about maintaining insurance enrollment while on Leave of Absence should contact Gallagher.

Students who are on a medical leave of absence that extends into the next plan year may opt to extend their coverage for one additional semester (August 1–December 31). Please note: students on a medical leave of absence who wish to extend their coverage for the additional semester must do so by contacting shs-insurance@duke.edu before September 15. Students should connect with their graduate program to discuss the financial impacts of this extension.

The Graduate School will not cover premiums beyond the sixth consecutive year of study for students in non-research assistant roles (Job Code 1590), including instances when a student takes a leave of absence during years 1-6.

Graduation

The term in which a Ph.D. student or terminal Master’s student graduates or withdraws will affect the Graduate School payment of the SMIP/SDIP premium as follows:

Summer Graduates

Since the Duke SMIP plan years end on July 31st, whereas summer graduates are technically enrolled through the end of August, students graduating in the summer term

may be without health insurance for their last month of study. Summer graduates are offered the option to extend their SMIP coverage for one month, through August 31st. If the Graduate School paid the student’s Duke SMIP premium for the prior plan year, per the scholarship eligibility criteria above, the Graduate School will also cover the premium for the August extension. If the student was responsible for the prior year premium, and chooses to extend coverage for the month of August, the student will be responsible for the additional premium payment. SDIP cannot be extended for one month for summer graduates and will terminate July 31st.

Fall Graduates

Students who graduate in the fall will have the option to continue their SMIP coverage for the remainder of the plan year at their own pro-rated expense. Graduate School payment of the SMIP premiums will continue through December 31st. If a student chooses to maintain their Duke SMIP coverage through the seven remaining months of the plan year, the student will be charged for, and expected to pay, the balance of the plan term premiums through their Bursar account. If the student wishes to terminate their Duke SMIP, they must submit the termination request to the student health office via Kuali form by December 31st.

SDIP does not offer an option to terminate early for fall graduates, as the premium provides coverage until July 31st and is not pro-rated. If the fall graduate was eligible for The Graduate School’s insurance scholarship that academic year, TGS will continue to cover the full dental insurance.