Graduate Medical Education Residents are automatically enrolled into the CU 403(b) Retirement Option Plan — but whether and how you participate is up to you.
Plan basics
- GME Residents will be automatically enrolled in the CU 403(b) Retirement Option Plan, contributing 0.5% pre-tax of your monthly income.
- CU will contribute 1% of your monthly income as long as you participate — totaling 1.5% contributed to your CU 403(b) account.
Enrollment options
You can enroll, change or terminate your contributions at any time.
- Take no action and be automatically enrolled in the 403(b) plan.
- Opt out of the plan entirely, and you will not be eligible for the 1% employer contribution.
- Change contribution election from pre-tax to Roth (after-tax), meaning your 0.5% elections will be deducted after tax.
- Contribute more than the default 0.5% contribution rate.
- If you currently contribute to the CU 403(b) Voluntary Retirement Plan, your election remains in place in addition to the 0.5% default contribution.
- If you choose to contribute more, the maximum amount CU will contribute is 1%.
Learn more about the GME 403(b) plan by watching an interactive course
CU 403(b) Retirement Option GME Resources
| Plan Features | 403(b) pretax | 403(b) ROTH (after tax) |
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| Plan administrator | TIAA | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Who can participate? | All CU faculty and staff | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| How much can you contribute? |
2025 Maximum: $23,500 2026 Maximum: $24,500 Minimum: N/A 2025 Catch-up contributions: Ages 50-59 and 64+: $7,500 Ages 60-63: $11,250 2025 Catch-up contributions: Ages 50-59 and 64+: $8,000 Ages 60-63: $11,250 2025 Combined limits:
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| When are you vested? | Contributions to this account will be 100% vested immediately. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Investment choices |
See investment lineup Target date funds: Take a hands-off approach where you invest in a target-date fund based on when you'd like to retire. Core investment menu: From 18 funds on the 403(b) plan menu, you will be able to construct a well-diversified portfolio. Self-directed brokerage: Seek and invest funds outside the 403(b) plan's core investment lineup. (Please note: Brokerage account holders are subject to fees.) |
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| When can you take money out? | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Qualifying distributions:
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Qualifying distributions:
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| Are loans available? | Contact TIAA to learn about eligibility | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| What are the fees? |
There’s a fixed annual service fee based on your account balance and deducted quarterly, as noted in the chart below. Any revenue sharing imbedded in investments will be returned to your account. Additional fees are based on individual investment choices. See this presentation for more information.
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