To be eligible for 2025-26 Trust Fund benefits, you must be:

 

1. An enrolled graduate student at UMass Amherst AND

2. Working in a GEO-eligible position earning at least $7,389.10* between May 25, 2025 and May 23, 2026. ​

 * subject to change when wage increases are implemented 

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Other eligibility scenarios​

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Spring-only eligibility: If your earnings occur only in the spring semester, but will total at least $7,389.10, you are eligible to enroll in the plans for August 1 coverage.  However, your enrollment application must be accompanied by a copy of your fully-signed employment contract or letter of appointment.

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Spring-entering grad students: If your earnings will total at least $7,389.10, you are eligible to enroll. However, coverage starts with your first official day as a student (the first day of the spring semester) and continues through July 31, 2026. 

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Summer earnings: Summer earnings in a GEO-eligible position count "forward" toward your eligibility for the next plan year that starts in August.  If your only earnings occur in the summer, this will not make you eligible for coverage during the concurrent summer months.  For example, if your only GEO-eligible earnings commenced June 1, 2025, these will count toward your eligibility for benefits starting August 1, 2025.

 

Eligibility Based on Teaching University+ courses (formerly University Without Walls): Teaching (1) 3-credit University+ course is equivalent to earning $7,389.10 for the purposes of Trust Fund benefits.

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Eligibility for Prestigious Graduate Fellows (Previously "Non-Working" Fellows): There is an agreement in place between the University and GEO/UAW Local 2322 making certain fellowship recipients eligible for Trust Fund benefits. The agreement states: "The agreement incorporates graduate students who are awarded prestigious external fellowships into the bargaining unit to ensure they maintain full benefits while being funded from an external source. Fellowships must be at least $7,389.10 [or equivalent to a 10-hour semester appointment] to qualify. Certain terms of the agreement, such as Appointment & Reappointment, Job Security, Vacation, and Additional Time Off do not apply." To see if your fellowship makes you eligible, check the Graduate School's information page.

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Renewing eligibility: Remember, grad students who were previously eligible for benefits must re-enroll every plan year to maintain benefits. 

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Former Graduate Student Employees: If you graduate, you will lose your eligibility for Trust Fund benefits at the end of the plan year in which you graduate, on July 31. If you withdraw as a student from the University, fail to be enrolled as a student, or terminate your employment prior to earning the minimum earnings required above, you will lose your eligibility thirty (30) days after the aforementioned event occurs. If you lose your eligibility, you have the option of continuing your coverage for up to 18 months by paying 102% of your monthly premium, per the federal COBRA legislation. Click here to learn more about COBRA.

 

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