Receiving Your Benefits

After You Leave the University

Optional Forms of Payment

The optional forms of payment vary depending on the investment funds in which your retirement savings account is invested. Once you decide to start receiving benefit payments, you have the flexibility to start payments from the TIAA-CREF investment funds (so long as you have accumulations of at least $10,000 in the TIAA-CREF investment fund) and Vanguard investment funds on different dates. For example, you can start benefit payments from different CREF Accounts on different dates so long as you have accumulations of at least $10,000 in each CREF Account. You can elect different forms of payment for your accumulations in the TIAA-CREF investment funds (so long as the form of payment is available to you and you have accumulations of at least $10,000 for each form of payment) and for your accumulations in the Vanguard investment funds. For example, you can elect an annuity option for your accumulations in a CREF Account and periodic distributions for your accumulations in a Vanguard investment fund.

While this Summary Plan Description summarizes the major provisions of this plan, it does not provide you with every plan detail. The plan documents, which govern this plan, provide full details. If there are any discrepancies between this Summary Plan Description and the legal plan documents, the legal plan documents control.