Retirement Plans

Retirement Plans

Auburn University offers mandatory and voluntary retirement plans to help employees meet their financial goals.

Mandatory Retirement

  • All eligible employees in at least a 50% time capacity are required to join the Retirement Systems of Alabama (RSA).

  • This program provides specific benefits in accordance with the plan or option the member designates when they applies for retirement. All contributions are tax deferred for federal income tax purposes until retirement or withdrawal from the plan.

  • Participants are classified as either Tier 1 or Tier 2 members.

Tier 1

  • Participants who became members prior to Jan. 1, 2013.

  • They have a payroll deduction equaling 7.5% of earnable compensation.

  • They are eligible for retirement benefits at age 60 with at least 10 years of service.

  • If they have 25 years of service, they can retire at any age and apply for full retirement benefits from RSA.

Tier 2

  • Participants who become members on or after Jan. 1, 2013.

  • As of Oct. 1, 2021, they have a payroll deduction equaling 6.2% of earnable compensation.

  • They are eligible for retirement benefits at age 62 with at least 10 years of service.

Learn more about mandatory retirement.

Voluntary Retirement

Eligible employees may also participate in the voluntary retirement plans offered by Auburn.

403(b) Voluntary Retirement Savings Plan (VRSP)/Roth option

  • An employee can defer up to $20,500 per year to a 403(b) plan during the 2022 calendar year.

  • Auburn will match employee contributions dollar for dollar up to 5% of compensation with an annual cap of $1,650.

  • If an employee is over age 50 or turns age 50 during the 2020 calendar year, they may defer an additional amount up to $6,500.

  • Participating vendors include AIG (VALIC), Fidelity, Lincoln Financial and TIAA.

457(b) Deferred Compensation Plan/Roth option

  • In addition to contributions made to the 403(b) Plan, an employee can defer up to $20,500 per year to a 457(b) plan during the 2020 calendar year.

  • If an employee is over age 50 or turns age 50 during the 2020 calendar year, he/she may defer an additional amount up to $6,500.

  • Participating vendors include AIG (VALIC), Fidelity and TIAA.

Learn more about voluntary retirement.

Roth Options Available

Roth options are available for the 403(b) and 457(b) plans. This is an additional way to save in the plan where an employee contributes after-tax dollars from their paycheck. Unlike a traditional pre-tax 403(b) or 457(b), when an employee contributes to a Roth, at retirement they can then withdraw tax-free dollars from their account.

Benefits of Participating

  • An employee can increase their retirement income through regular, planned investing.

  • Participating with before-tax contributions, an employee can lower his/her federal and state taxable wages. (This does not apply to Social Security or Medicare taxable wages).

Reviewing Your Beneficiaries

When did you last review your life insurance and retirement plan beneficiary elections? By periodically reviewing your beneficiary designations, you can rest assured that your assets will be distributed according to your wishes.

  • When you enroll for 2022 benefits, you can review and update your beneficiary designations for Auburn University’s employer provided Term Life, (if applicable), optional Voluntary Term Life and/or Voluntary AD&D (if enrolled).

  • To update the designations for your retirement plans, please contact the Teachers’ Retirement System (TRS) for your mandatory retirement account, and your respective vendor(s) if you have a 403(b) or 457(b) account.

 

Last updated: 09/23/2022