New Employee Enrollment

The George Washington University is committed to offering you a comprehensive benefits package that meets you and your family's needs.

Our variety of programs offer a wealth of resources to educate you on your health and welfare benefits' options, saving for retirement, life insurance and disability, and tuition benefits.

Please read the Benefits Guide (PDF) and the Benefits Highlights (PDF) for an overview of the benefits and perks offered to GW employees.

Enrollment Deadline

Unless otherwise noted, you have 30 calendar days from your Date of Hire to enroll online and submit any required supporting documentation for your health and welfare benefits.  You can enroll online in the 403(b) retirement plan at anytime

Coverage Effective Date

The coverage effective date for most benefits is the first day of the month following your date of hire.  If your date of hire is coincident with the first day of the month, the coverage effective date for most benefits is your date of hire.  

If you do not enroll at that time, you will need to wait until Annual Open Enrollment (unless you have a qualifying life event (QLE). Changes made during Annual Open Enrollment are effective January 1 of the following year.

Benefits Webinar

To help you understand the scope of your benefits, we strongly encourage you to attend the Benefits Webinar for New Employees. This webinar provides an overview of your benefits and offers an opportunity to ask questions to our GW Benefits team member. 

You can access the webinar Every Monday at 2pm EST.  Please note: If a holiday falls on a Monday, the webinar will be held the following week.  For New Year's Day, Memorial Day and Labor Day, the webinar will be held the day following the holiday.

2025 New Employee Orientation slides (PDF)

Webinar recordings (coming soon!)

Resources for Faculty and Staff:

*On the Go? Download the mobile app, enter our company code GWbenefitscenter, along with your GWID and password (date of birth in MMDDYYY format) and take your GW benefits with you wherever you go.