Full Time: 403(b) Defined Contribution Retirement Plan
Universal Availability Notice 2026 (PDF)
The Pace University 403 (b) Defined Contribution Retirement Plan is designed to provide faculty and staff with the opportunity to accumulate a source of retirement income, in addition to Social Security and personal savings, via pretax contributions, Roth after-tax contributions, or a combination of both.
TIAA is the sole plan service provider for the Pace University 403(b) Retirement Plan. Contributions can be managed, throughout the year, by logging into the TIAA participant portal and selecting “Manage Contributions” under the Accounts tab. It is also possible to initiate self-directed automatic increases for your contributions, through the TIAA participant portal, to help build savings faster. For additional assistance, please call TIAA at 1 (800) 842-2252, weekdays, 8:00 a.m.–10:00 p.m. ET.
The Plan is a defined contribution plan in which specific contributions are made by the employee and the University once eligibility requirements are met. The requirements for University contributions are based upon age and full-time service criteria.
Summary Plan Description
Eligibility for Employee Contribution
All employees are eligible to contribute to the plan except for employees who are enrolled as students and regularly attending classes offered by the Employer, and who are not otherwise in an eligible employee group.
Eligibility for University Contribution
All full-time employees who meet the following age and full-time criteria are eligible to join the Plan:
- Age 21-25 years need 2 years of service.
- Age 26+ years need 1 year of service.
Once you meet the eligibility requirements and have created an account in the TIAA participant portal the University will contribute a percentage of your base salary up to $360,000, effective January 1, 2026. You will also be required to make a contribution of at least 3% of your base salary. Your contribution may be pre-tax, Roth after-tax, or a combination of both. The University’s contribution is always made on a pre-tax basis.
Please review the Contribution Schedule below.
Note: Eligibility Criteria may be waived or credited upon establishing service requirements stated above at another institution of higher education or 501(c)3 organization. Employment with the former institution, organization must be within three years of employment with Pace.
Employees Ineligible for Matching Contributions: Visiting faculty members, students, part-time employees, and union members whose employment is covered by a collective bargaining agreement.
Enrollment Considerations
You must complete the necessary enrollment process and make a contribution election, via the TIAA participant portal, to participate in the retirement program. Any contributions that you make are subject to a statutory IRS annual limit.
Once you join the retirement plan, your contribution election will continue in effect from year to year. There is no need to designate an annual election, but you may voluntarily change your elections throughout the year.
You decide how to allocate the investment of both your contributions and those made on behalf of the University. Any changes to your investment strategies can be addressed directly with TIAA.
Roth Option
If you use the Roth option, you will contribute to your account after taxes are taken out of your paycheck, and you can make future qualified withdrawals from your retirement plan tax-free.
The Roth Catch-Up Mandate
IRS catch-up contribution rules for highly paid participants are changing as a result of the SECURE 2.0 Act Section 603 legislation. Starting January 1, 2026, this new federal requirement will impact the way certain employees make catch-up contributions to their retirement plans. The Mandate impacts employees who are age 50 or older by the end of the calendar year and have prior calendar year W-2 reported Social Security wages (Form W-2 Box 3) of more than $150,000 (threshold indexed annually). Specifically, individuals who are age 50 and older during 2026 who received FICA wages exceeding $150,000 in 2025 will be required to make any catch-up contributions on an after-tax Roth basis. Pre-tax catch-up contributions will no longer be permitted for these employees. However, contributions up to the standard limit ($24,500 in 2026) may still be made as pre-tax and/or Roth, based on an individual’s election. If your FICA wages were $150,000 or less in the prior year, you are not required to designate your age-based catch-up contributions as Roth.
Contribution Limits
Contributions are expressed as a percentage of pay and made on a pre-tax basis by payroll deduction only. Federal law limits the total amount a participant can contribute in one year to all Retirement Savings Plans (such as this plan and other 403(b) plans offering tax-deferred annuities), depending on your age and; in some cases, years of service to your employer.
The standard maximum employee contribution limit for 2026 is $24,500. The age-based catch-up contribution limits are as follows:
- Employee Age: 50-59
- Annual age-based catch-up contribution limit*: $8,000
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages greater than $150,000): Roth contribution
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages less or equal to $150,000): Pre-tax and/or Roth after-tax contributions
- Employee Age: 60-63
- Annual age-based catch-up contribution limit*: $11,250
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages greater than $150,000): Roth contribution
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages less or equal to $150,000): Pre-tax and/or Roth after-tax contributions
- Employee Age: 64 or older
- Annual age-based catch-up contribution limit*: $8,000
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages greater than $150,000): Roth contribution
- Contribution type: (Prior year FICA wages less or equal to $150,000): Pre-tax and/or Roth after-tax contributions
*Contributions limits are subject to change based on annual indexing.
The maximum contribution percentage allowed is 90%. However, it is the employee's responsibility to ensure that the contribution percentage elected will result in an allowable amount; other deductions, such as FICA tax, NYS Paid Family Leave, and union dues (where applicable) as well as voluntary deductions such as medical, dental, life, FSA, HSA, and commuter benefits, take precedence over the 403(b) contribution. If the elected contribution is greater than the net after deductions, no amount will be withheld. University Benefits is not able to provide payroll modeling and will not be responsible for errors that do not produce a contribution as a result of the other deductions.
Contribution Schedule
The Pace University Retirement Plan accepts both employee and employer contributions:
- University Contributions: For required contributions made by the University.
- Employee Contributions: For additional voluntary contributions made by the Employee.
The following depict the contribution schedules available under the Pace University Retirement Plan:
For Employees hired prior to October 2, 2000
- Service: 20+ years
- Employer Per Payroll Contribution: 8%
- Employee Required Per Payroll Contribution: 0%
For Employees hired or rehired on or after October 2, 2000
- Service: 0+ years
- Employer Per Payroll Contribution: 6%
- Employee Required Per Payroll Contribution: 3%
Pace Target Retirement Series
TIAA has been selected by Pace University as the investment provider for your Plan contributions. The Plan lets you invest your account in a number of different investment funds. Unless you choose a different investment fund or funds, as of January 31, 2024, your Plan account will be invested in the default investment option for the Pace University Defined Contribution Retirement Plan, which is the age-based Pace Target Retirement Series that corresponds to your estimated date of retirement. The Pace Target Retirement Series model provides a ready-made diversified portfolio which includes a combination of investment options that offer a specific balance of financial risk and reward, and takes into account your current age and your projected retirement date. The investment allocation adjusts to become more conservative as you near and enter retirement. Over time, the Pace Target Retirement Series automatically rebalances your account to help keep you on track with your retirement goals. If the default investment fund changes at any time in the future, you will be notified.
The fact sheet for the Pace Target Retirement Series (PDF) provides additional information, including the investment objectives, risk and return characteristics, and fees and expenses of the funds.
As required by the Department of Labor, please see the Summary Annual Reports (SAR) for the Pace University Defined Contribution Retirement Plan (PDF).
Benefits Disclaimer
The HR/Benefits website is intended only to provide information for the guidance of Pace University employees. The writers of the content have exercised their best efforts to ensure accuracy of the information, but accuracy is not guaranteed. If there are any discrepancies between the information on the website, verbal representations and the Plan documents, the Plan documents will always govern. The information is subject to change from time to time, and the University reserves the right to change or terminate these Plans at any time. The information contained on the website is not intended to replace the plan documents, nor is the information in any way intended to imply a contract