Military and Veteran Education Benefits for Degree Completion

Key Infor­ma­tion:

• Mil­i­tary and vet­er­an edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits, includ­ing the Post‑9/11 GI Bill and Mont­gomery GI Bill, can cov­er tuition, fees, hous­ing, and sup­plies to help ser­vice mem­bers com­plete their degrees.
• Tuition Assis­tance (TA) pro­grams pro­vide up to $4,500 per fis­cal year for active-duty ser­vice mem­bers, with caps on per-cred­it costs.
• The Yel­low Rib­bon Pro­gram helps vet­er­ans cov­er tuition costs beyond the Post‑9/11 GI Bill lim­its at par­tic­i­pat­ing pri­vate and out-of-state schools.
• Mil­i­tary-friend­ly col­leges offer flex­i­ble sched­ul­ing, online pro­grams, and cred­it trans­fers for mil­i­tary expe­ri­ence, mak­ing degree com­ple­tion more acces­si­ble for ser­vice mem­bers and veterans.

Are you mak­ing the mil­i­tary-to-civil­ian tran­si­tion in the near future? If you are, then you must look into earn­ing a col­lege degree.

With it, you’ll have a com­pet­i­tive edge in the job mar­ket, either for entry-lev­el or lead­er­ship roles. You’ll also have a high­er income poten­tial and low­er unem­ploy­ment risk. Col­lege degree hold­ers earn between $1,058 and $1,493/week in medi­an wages; unem­ploy­ment rates are between 2.2 and 2.7%.

There are also many non-pecu­niary ben­e­fits when you’re in col­lege. Mak­ing new con­nec­tions, gain­ing civil­ian skills, and boost­ing your con­fi­dence are among them. Indeed, your mil­i­tary-to-civil­ian tran­si­tion becomes more successful.

How­ev­er, we also under­stand that ris­ing col­lege costs are wor­ri­some, espe­cial­ly if you have a fam­i­ly. The aver­age cost of atten­dance is $38,270/student/year. With the real medi­an house­hold income at $80,610/year, financ­ing your col­lege degree is an issue.

For­tu­nate­ly, there are mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits for degree com­ple­tion avail­able. These edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits can off­set the costs of a col­lege edu­ca­tion. You can apply for cov­er­age of your tuition and fees, books and sup­plies, and housing.

Here, we’ll dis­cuss the cur­rent mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits for degree com­ple­tion. We’ll also dis­cuss oth­er forms of finan­cial aid for mil­i­tary and vet­er­an students.

Relat­ed:

• Accel­er­at­ed Degree Pro­grams for Mil­i­tary Veterans
• Vet­er­an to BSN: Accel­er­at­ed Nurs­ing Edu­ca­tion for Mil­i­tary Veterans
• Fast and Afford­able Edu­ca­tion: Acces­si­ble Degree Pro­grams for Every Learner
• Tech-Focused Online Degrees for Future-Proof Careers

Overview of Military and Veteran Education Benefits

Mil­i­tary and vet­er­an edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits for col­lege degrees dif­fer depend­ing on the pro­gram. Every pro­gram has its spe­cif­ic eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments, cov­er­age, and pay­ment amounts. Check with your com­mand­ing offi­cer or the VA for more information.

GI Bill Programs

The Ser­vice­men’s Read­just­ment Act of 1944 start­ed the GI Bill ben­e­fits for vet­er­ans. Today, these are the main GI Bills and their edu­ca­tion benefits.

• Post‑9/11 Bill

Known as Chap­ter 33, its edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits cov­er the following:

• Tuition and fees
• Month­ly hous­ing allowance
• Annu­al stipend for books and supplies
• Relo­ca­tion costs from a rur­al area to a college

Being on active duty for at least 1,095 days or 36 months means you qual­i­fy for 100% ben­e­fits. (Oth­er eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments apply)

Montgomery GI Bill — Active Duty (MGIB-AD)

Appli­cants must have served at least two years on active duty to qual­i­fy. Eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments dif­fer between the four cat­e­gories under MGIB-AD.

The bill can cov­er these edu­ca­tion benefits:

• Reme­di­al courses
• Defi­cien­cy courses
• Refresh­er courses

The max­i­mum ben­e­fits allow­able is 48 months exclud­ing VR&E ben­e­fits. How­ev­er, many appli­cants qual­i­fy for only 36 months.

Montgomery GI Bill – Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR)

Mem­bers of the Select­ed Reserve qual­i­fy for up to 36 months of edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits. They include those in the Army, Marine Corps, Navy, Air Force, and Coast Guard Reserves. The Army Nation­al Guard and the Air Nation­al Guard mem­bers also qualify.

Appli­cants can request finan­cial aid for the following:

• Col­lege courses
• Nation­al tests
• Reme­di­al, defi­cien­cy and refresh­er training
• Flight train­ing

The VA releas­es a month­ly edu­ca­tion ben­e­fit under MGIB-SR. The col­lege rate ranges from $481/month to $120.25/month.

For online stu­dents, it’s “55% of the estab­lished cost for the num­ber of lessons” completed.

Tuition Assistance (TA) Programs

The tuition assis­tance for mil­i­tary ser­vice mem­bers can cov­er up to 100% of tuition. But there are caps on the pay­ment amounts, as follows:

• “Not to exceed $250 for every semes­ter cred­it hour or $166 for every quar­ter cred­it hour.”
• “Not to exceed $4,500 per fis­cal year, from Octo­ber 1 through Sep­tem­ber 30.”

Every branch has its spe­cif­ic ini­tial and con­tin­u­ing eli­gi­bil­i­ty requirements.

Scholarships for Military and Veteran Students

Look beyond the gov­ern­ment-spon­sored mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits for degree com­ple­tion, too. Schol­ar­ships for mil­i­tary and vet­er­an stu­dents and their spous­es and depen­dents are available.

• AMVETS Nation­al Schol­ar­ship Program
• Pat Till­man Foun­da­tion Scholarship
• Nation­al Mil­i­tary Fam­i­ly Asso­ci­a­tion (NMFA) Scholarships
• Mil­i­tary Spouse Career Advance­ment Accounts (MyCAA)
• Spouse Edu­ca­tion and Career Oppor­tu­ni­ties (SECO) Program

Yellow Ribbon Program

What the Post‑9/11 GI Bill does­n’t cov­er, the Yel­low Rib­bon Pro­gram can if you’re qualified.

You must first qual­i­fy for 100% edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits under the Post‑9/11 GI Bill. Then, you must meet at least one of sev­er­al eli­gi­bil­i­ty require­ments.

The col­lege where you’re enrolled must be a Yel­low Rib­bon Pro­gram par­tic­i­pant. Har­vard Uni­ver­si­ty, Colum­bia Uni­ver­si­ty, and NYU are examples.

Military-Friendly Colleges and Universities

Here’s what you should know about mil­i­tary-friend­ly insti­tu­tions to get you started.

Defining Military-Friendly Institutions

When we say “mil­i­tary-friend­ly col­leges,” we look for these notable features.

• Flex­i­ble sched­ul­ing through evening and week­end courses
• Online pro­grams that remove geo­graph­i­cal bar­ri­ers and pro­vide flex­i­ble and con­ve­nient access
• Trans­fer cred­its for mil­i­tary train­ing and experience
• Tai­lored sup­port ser­vices for mil­i­tary and vet­er­an stu­dents (i.e., vet­er­an stu­dent center)

Top Military-Friendly Schools

Here are among the best mil­i­tary-friend­ly col­leges for veterans.

• Uni­ver­si­ty of Mary­land Glob­al Campus
• Texas A&M University
• Uni­ver­si­ty of South­ern California
• George Wash­ing­ton University
• Uni­ver­si­ty of Denver

Transfer Credits for Military Experience

Ask for an offi­cial copy of your Joint Ser­vices Tran­script from the Defense Man­pow­er Data Cen­ter. You can have your JST eval­u­at­ed for trans­fer cred­its. This can be done by your col­lege or by the Amer­i­can Coun­cil on Education.

Online Degree Programs for Military and Veteran Students

Look for these fea­tures when com­par­ing degree pro­grams for vet­er­ans using mil­i­tary benefits.

Flexibility for Active-Duty and Working Veterans

Always check the region­al or nation­al accred­i­ta­tion for online col­leges. Check the pro­gram­mat­ic accred­i­ta­tion, if applic­a­ble, for the pro­gram you’re inter­est­ed in. Accred­i­ta­tion is a must as a guar­an­tee of com­pli­ance with high­er edu­ca­tion standards.

Then, con­sid­er the sched­ul­ing flex­i­bil­i­ty of the online pro­grams. Flex­i­bil­i­ty is a must for mil­i­tary and vet­er­an stu­dents because of their mul­ti­ple respon­si­bil­i­ties. Self-paced learn­ing for­mats and asyn­chro­nous cours­es are best for this purpose.

Popular Online Degree Options for Veterans

The Post‑9/11 GI Bill ben­e­fits for edu­ca­tion apply to all aca­d­e­m­ic dis­ci­plines. But the most pop­u­lar dis­ci­plines are:

• Busi­ness
• Health­care
• Infor­ma­tion technology
• Crim­i­nal justice

Technology Support and Resources

Schol­ar­ships for mil­i­tary and vet­er­an stu­dents are cru­cial in earn­ing col­lege degrees. But, tech­nol­o­gy sup­port and resources are a must for stu­dent suc­cess, too. Look for:

• Easy, con­ve­nient, and effec­tive access to vir­tu­al classrooms
• Effi­cient tech support
• Sup­port­ive and knowl­edge­able aca­d­e­m­ic advisors

Financial Aid and Other Benefits

Lever­age your finan­cial aid in online degree pro­grams for vet­er­ans and mil­i­tary students.

Combining FAFSA and Military Education Benefits

By com­bin­ing your FAFSA and mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits, you may cov­er 100% of your direct costs. Plus, your edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits can cov­er a sig­nif­i­cant por­tion of your indi­rect costs. Apply for every gov­ern­ment-spon­sored edu­ca­tion pro­gram you’re eli­gi­ble for.

Then, com­bine them with grants, loans, and work-study oppor­tu­ni­ties. Yes, it takes time and effort, but if your costs are cov­ered, it’s worth it.

State-Specific Veteran Benefits

Ask your state author­i­ties about in-state tuition waivers and state-fund­ed schol­ar­ships, too. Check out your state’s Vet­er­ans Affairs Office and Depart­ment of High­er Edu­ca­tion for more information.

Housing and Living Stipends

The Post‑9/11 GI Bill hous­ing allowance can also cov­er liv­ing expens­es. You’ll receive your month­ly hous­ing allowance at the end of each month. The amount varies based on the “month­ly mil­i­tary BAH for an E‑5 with dependents”.

Steps for Veterans and Military Members to Maximize Education Benefits

Research eligible programs and institutions.

• Request infor­ma­tion about the VA-approved schools and Yel­low Rib­bon participants.
• Check the col­leges’ region­al or nation­al accreditation.

Apply for benefits early.

• Sub­mit your GI Bill appli­ca­tion papers at least 30–60 days before the enroll­ment peri­od starts.
• Pre­pare addi­tion­al doc­u­ments for submissions.
• Work with your com­mand­ing offi­cer, a VA offi­cial, and an admis­sions officer.

Create a degree completion plan.

• Work with your aca­d­e­m­ic advi­sor, too. Map out your cours­es and timelines.
• Apply for as many trans­fer cred­its as possible.

Leverage support services.

• Take full advan­tage of vet­er­an cen­ters, career ser­vices, and men­tor­ship programs.
• Expand your network.

Common Challenges and Solutions

Understanding Complex Benefit Options

Tak­ing advan­tage of mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits for degree com­ple­tion is a com­pli­cat­ed process. There are many peo­ple, papers, and pro­ce­dures involved. The best thing to do is ask for help from VA edu­ca­tion counselors.

Balancing Education with Military or Civilian Life

Achiev­ing a healthy work-life bal­ance while being a col­lege stu­dent is dif­fi­cult. Start by enrolling in an online degree pro­gram or a pro­gram with mil­i­tary-friend­ly poli­cies. Then, adopt effec­tive time man­age­ment strategies.

Navigating Financial Gaps

Finan­cial issues aren’t new in col­lege. But you can address them by com­bin­ing finan­cial aid oppor­tu­ni­ties. Mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits, fed­er­al aid, and work-study are good examples.

Success Story of A Veteran Achieving Degree Completion

Hal­lie Oxley, a Marine vet­er­an, used his Post‑9/11 GI Bill edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits to earn a bach­e­lor’s degree in cloud com­put­ing. He says, “An edu­ca­tion does pay off.”

Conclusion

The Post‑9/11 Bill, Mont­gomery GI Bill, and Tuition Assis­tance pro­gram are the main sources of mil­i­tary edu­ca­tion ben­e­fits. These can cov­er the costs of your col­lege edu­ca­tion. You must take full advan­tage of them to earn your degree.