>

Life Insurance

 

People, Culture and Belonging

Looking for 2026 Life Insurance? Click here.

Vanderbilt University partners with MetLife to offer life insurance to fully benefits-eligible employees, as well as their spouses and children.

Basic Life

Vanderbilt provides a Basic Life insurance policy to fully benefits-eligible employees. Basic Life insurance is an amount equal to your annual base benefits rate (ABBR), up to a maximum of $500,000. Your ABBR is typically your annual salary. You can find your ABBR by logging in to Oracle and selecting Pay.

TOTAL AMOUNT OF COVERAGE AND TAXES

If you do not want to incur a life insurance tax on your paycheck, you may wish to select $50,000 in Basic Life coverage rather than the amount equal to your ABBR one times salary. IRC Section 79 provides an exclusion of the first $50,000 of group-term life insurance coverage under a policy carried directly or indirectly by an employer. There are no tax consequences if the total amount of such policies does not exceed $50,000. The imputed cost of coverage in excess of $50,000 must be included in income, using the IRS Premium Table, and are subject to social security and Medicare taxes.

Employee Supplemental Life

You may choose Supplemental Life coverage up to 8 times your annual base benefits rate up to an overall maximum of $1,000,000. If you elect Supplemental Life coverage as a new Vanderbilt University employee within your new hire enrollment period, there is no medical review required for coverage that does not exceed $500,000. If you are past your new employee enrollment period or coverage will exceed $500,000, you must complete the MetLife Statement of Health form (located in My VU Benefits) to add Supplemental Life coverage (see examples below).

  • Example 1

    Employee Joe’s Annual Base Benefits Rate (ABBR) = $75,000

    • As a new hire, Joe elects to have up to 3x ABBR in Supplemental Life insurance (without an approved Statement of Health application) in addition to the Basic Life Vanderbilt provides.
  • Joe would have

    $75,000 (Basic) + $225,000 (Supplemental) = $300,000 (total)

    • If Joe did not elect 3x Supplemental Life coverage within his new employee enrollment period and wanted to add it later, he would need to complete the MetLife Statement of Health (SOH). The SOH would be submitted to MetLife for approval. The new coverage is effective only if approved by MetLife and is not retroactive.
  • Example 2

    Employee Mary’s ABBR = $175,000

    • As a new hire, Mary wants to enroll in 3 times her ABBR for supplemental life insurance for a total of $700,000 in life insurance. Since her Supplemental Life insurance is more than $500,000, she needs to complete the MetLife Statement of Health (SOH). The SOH would be submitted to MetLife for approval. The coverage is effective only if approved by MetLife and is not retroactive.
  • Mary would have

    $175,000 (Basic) + $525,000 (Supplemental) = $700,000 (total)

    Note: if you are enrolled in Supplement Life, you have access to a free will preparation service offered by MetLife. For more information, please refer to this flyer and FAQ.

Spouse and Child Supplemental Life

Vanderbilt University also offers supplemental life insurance coverage for your spouse and child(ren). You may enroll in spouse life insurance from $10,000 up to $250,000 in increments of $10,000, up to a maximum of 50% of your elected coverage. You may also elect coverage for your dependent child(ren) at $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000.

Supplemental life insurance is paid for by the employee. Premiums are based on age and annual base benefits rate. The rates for your coverage will  be displayed for you as you complete your enrollment in My VU Benefits.

  • Example 1

    Employee Joe has enrolled in spouse supplemental life insurance. Joe’s total coverage amount is $300,000 ($75,000 Basic Life + $225,000 Supplemental Life). The most Joe could elect for Spouse Life is $150,000.

  • Example 2

    Employee Miriam has elected $50,000 for basic life insurance and has no supplemental life. She wants to enroll her spouse in life insurance. The total amount she could elect is $20,000.

How to Enroll and Make Changes

To enroll as a newly hired or newly benefits-eligible employee, visit My VU Benefits within 30 days:

Go to My VU Benefits and log in with your VUnetID and password, then click on the Enroll button to begin. Once you have made your elections, be sure to keep your confirmation of benefits statement for your records.

You may make changes to your supplemental life insurance at any time during the year, without a qualifying life event.

To make changes, go to My VU Benefits and log in with your VUnetID and password. Then under Change Your Current Benefits, select Supplemental Benefits Change Event. Enter today’s date and click Save. Please note, coverage is not guaranteed. Your current election for Supplemental Life insurance will remain in effect until MetLife approves your statement of health. Once you have completed enrollment, you will be prompted to complete MetLife’s statement of health form. If you do not complete the form online, one will be mailed to your address on file.

Designating and Changing Beneficiaries

  • Overview

    A beneficiary receives financial benefits in the event of the insured's death. Beneficiaries can be primary or contingent (also called secondary).

    • A primary beneficiary is the first person you name to receive the proceeds from your insurance policy upon your death. You can designate 100% of the proceeds to one primary beneficiary or you can divide the proceeds among multiple primary beneficiaries.
    • A contingent (or secondary) beneficiary receives the proceeds from your insurance policy only if the primary beneficiary (or beneficiaries) is/are deceased or do not meet the criteria for the policy.
  • How to Designate or Update Your Beneficiaries

    It’s important to list beneficiaries for your benefits and you can designate and/or update your beneficiaries at any time during the year. Any changes you make are effective immediately.

    1. Go to My VU Benefits.
    2. Log in with your VUnetID and password.
    3. Go to the Menu and the select Your Benefits, then click on Beneficiaries.
    4. You will see your current beneficiaries. You may add a new beneficiary at any time. You may also allocate amounts for each beneficiary, for both primary and secondary (also called contingent) at any time .
      • To remove a beneficiary, change the percentage for that beneficiary to "0." Then allocate the percentage for the new beneficiary(ies) to equal 100% and click Save Changes.
      • To edit a beneficiary's name, click on that name and the "Edit Beneficiary" dialog box will open. Make your changes and click Save Changes. To make changes to a beneficiary's birth date or Social Security number, contact People Experience.
    5. You may also allocate amounts for each beneficiary, for both primary and secondary (also called contingent) at any time by clicking the Change button under each benefit.
        • To remove a beneficiary, change the percentage for that beneficiary to "0" and their type to ‘Not Allocated’. Then allocate the percentage for the new beneficiary(ies) to equal 100% and click Save Changes.
        • Use Split Percentage to have the system allocate an equal amount (totaling 100%) to all beneficiaries.

How to File a Life Insurance Claim

For information or help on filing a life insurance claim, please email benefits@vanderbilt.edu.

Resources

* Find your annual base benefits rate by logging in to Oracle and selecting Pay.

Life Insurance 2026

Vanderbilt University partners with New York Life to offer life insurance to fully benefits-eligible employees, as well as their spouses and children.

Basic Life

Vanderbilt provides a Basic Life insurance policy to fully benefits-eligible employees. Basic Life insurance is an amount equal to your annual base benefits rate (ABBR), up to a maximum of $500,000. Your ABBR is typically your annual salary. You can find your ABBR by logging in to Oracle and selecting Pay.

TOTAL AMOUNT OF COVERAGE AND TAXES

If you do not want to incur a life insurance tax on your paycheck, you may wish to select $50,000 in Basic Life coverage rather than the amount equal to your ABBR one times salary. IRC Section 79 provides an exclusion of the first $50,000 of group-term life insurance coverage under a policy carried directly or indirectly by an employer. There are no tax consequences if the total amount of such policies does not exceed $50,000. The imputed cost of coverage in excess of $50,000 must be included in income, using the IRS Premium Table, and are subject to social security and Medicare taxes. 

Employee Supplemental Life

You may choose Supplemental Life coverage up to eight times your annual base benefits rate up to an overall maximum of $1,000,000. If you elect Supplemental Life coverage as a new Vanderbilt University employee within your new hire enrollment period, there is no medical review required for coverage that does not exceed three times your annual pay or $500,000, whichever is less. If you do not enroll when you first become eligible, or coverage will exceed three times your annual salary or $500,000, you must complete a Statement of Health (accessed via My VU Benefits) to add Supplemental Life coverage. See examples below for more.

  • Example 1

    Employee Joe’s Annual Base Benefits Rate (ABBR) = $75,000

    • As a new hire, Joe elects to have up to three times his ABBR in Supplemental Life insurance in addition to the Basic Life Vanderbilt provides. His elected amount does not exceed $500,000, so no Statement of Health is required.
    • Joe would have: $75,000 (Basic) + $225,000 (Supplemental) = $300,000 (total)
    • If Joe decided not to elect Supplemental Life coverage as a newly hired employee, he would need to complete the New York Life Statement of Health (SOH) if he wanted to enroll at a later date. The SOH would be submitted to New York Life for approval.
  • Example 2

    Employee Mary’s ABBR = $175,000

    • As a new hire, Mary wants to enroll in three times her ABBR for supplemental life insurance for a total of $700,000 in life insurance. Since her Supplemental Life insurance is more than $500,000, she needs to complete the Statement of Health and be approved by New York Life for the amount of $500,000. If Mary did not submit her Statement of Health, her Supplemental Life coverage would be approved for only $500,000.
    • Mary would have: $175,000 (Basic) + $525,000 (Supplemental) = $700,000 (total)

    Note: if you are enrolled in Supplement Life, you have access to a free will preparation service offered by New York Life. For more information, please refer to this flyer and FAQ.

Spouse and Child Supplemental Life

Vanderbilt University also offers supplemental life insurance coverage for your spouse and child(ren). You may enroll in spouse life insurance from $10,000 up to $250,000 in increments of $10,000, up to a maximum of 50% of your elected coverage. You may also elect coverage for your dependent child(ren) from $5,000 up to $25,000.

Supplemental life insurance is paid for by the employee. Premiums are based on age and the annual base benefits rate. The rates for your coverage will be displayed for you as you complete your enrollment in My VU Benefits.

  • Example 1

    Employee Joe has enrolled in spouse supplemental life insurance. Joe’s total coverage amount is $300,000 ($75,000 Basic Life + $225,000 Supplemental Life). The most Joe could elect for Spouse Life is $150,000.

  • Example 2

    Employee Miriam has elected $50,000 for basic life insurance and has no supplemental life. She wants to enroll her spouse in life insurance. The total amount she could elect is $20,000.

How to Enroll and Make Changes

To enroll as a newly hired or newly benefits-eligible employee, visit My VU Benefits within 30 days:

Go to My VU Benefits and log in with your VUnetID and password, then click on the Enroll button to begin. Once you have made your elections, be sure to keep your confirmation of benefits statement for your records.

You may make changes to your supplemental life insurance at any time during the year, without a qualifying life event.

To make changes, go to My VU Benefits and log in with your VUnetID and password. Then, under Change Your Current Benefits, select Supplemental Benefits Change Event. Enter today’s date and click Save. Please note that coverage is not guaranteed. Your current election for Supplemental Life insurance will remain in effect until New York Life approves your statement of health. Once you have completed enrollment, you will be prompted to complete New York Life’s Statement of Health form. You will have 90 days to complete the statement of health. If your SOH is not completed or denied, your request for coverage will be cancelled.

Age Reduction

Add age grid. Note that it applies to basic life, supp life, and spouse life. All based on the age of the employee.

Designating and Changing Beneficiaries

  • Overview

    A beneficiary receives financial benefits in the event of the insured's death. Beneficiaries can be primary or contingent (also called secondary).

    • A primary beneficiary is the first person you name to receive the proceeds from your insurance policy upon your death. You can designate 100% of the proceeds to one primary beneficiary or you can divide the proceeds among multiple primary beneficiaries.
    • A contingent (or secondary) beneficiary receives the proceeds from your insurance policy only if the primary beneficiary (or beneficiaries) is/are deceased or do not meet the criteria for the policy.
  • How to Designate or Update Your Beneficiaries

    It’s important to list beneficiaries for your benefits and you can designate and/or update your beneficiaries at any time during the year. Any changes you make are effective immediately.

    1. Go to My VU Benefits.
    2. Log in with your VUnetID and password.
    3. Go to the Menu and the select Your Benefits, then click on Beneficiaries.
    4. You will see your current beneficiaries. You may add a new beneficiary at any time. You may also allocate amounts for each beneficiary, for both primary and secondary (also called contingent) at any time.
      • To remove a beneficiary, change the percentage for that beneficiary to "0." Then allocate the percentage for the new beneficiary(ies) to equal 100% and click Save Changes.
      • To edit a beneficiary's name, click on that name and the "Edit Beneficiary" dialog box will open. Make your changes and click Save Changes. To make changes to a beneficiary's birth date or Social Security number, contact People Experience.
    5. You may also allocate amounts for each beneficiary, for both primary and secondary (also called contingent) at any time by clicking the Change button under each benefit.
      • To remove a beneficiary, change the percentage for that beneficiary to "0" and their type to ‘Not Allocated’. Then allocate the percentage for the new beneficiary(ies) to equal 100% and click Save Changes.
      • Use Split Percentage to have the system allocate an equal amount (totaling 100%) to all beneficiaries.
  • How to File a Life Insurance Claim

    For information or help on filing a life insurance claim, please email benefits@vanderbilt.edu.

Resources