How to Use Your VA Benefits to Pay for College

As a member of the military, you can receive education benefits while both active-duty and as a veteran to achieve your academic goals. Ultimately, you determine the VA education benefits you’d like to utilize. If you are still active-duty, you may want to visit your on-base education center to speak to an education counselor who can assist you in making the right choice in VA Benefits for your academic journey. Alternatively, you may contact the VA Education Services hotline at: 888-442-4551 or 800-MyVA411 to speak to a VA representative who may be able to help find what best fits your needs. If you are located outside of the United States, you can call 918-781-5678 to speak to a VA representative about your options.

VA Benefits

All VA benefit programs start with the application at VA.gov. You may want to consider each type of VA benefit, the differences between how these benefits are paid out, and what they cover. You can register for courses and request your certification once you’ve applied for your benefits. It is in your best interest to know what benefits you are entitled to and how much benefit is available to you as early as possible.

Montgomery GI Bill® or Chapter 30:
The Montgomery GI Bill provides beneficiaries with up to 36 months of education benefits. Eligibility for this chapter of benefits requires at least two years of active service, but the exact length of required service may vary by branch of the military.

The benefit is paid out directly to you as a monthly stipend, the amount of which depends on your training time. For example: Are you pursuing your degree full-time, half-time, or one quarter time? As an example, at University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) six credit hours in an eight-week undergraduate session are considered full-time for VA purposes. Here is the link to the current pay rates for this chapter of benefits. Because this benefit is paid to you as a stipend, you are responsible for making tuition and fee payments directly to the institution.

Post-9/11 GI Bill® or Chapter 33 & Transfer of Benefits (Chapter 33 ToE):
The Post-9/11 GI Bill provides beneficiaries with up to 36 months of education benefits. Eligibility for this chapter of benefits requires at least 90 days of active aggregate service (after 9/11/2001), or 30 days if you’ve been discharged for a disability.

The benefit is paid out differently than the other chapters. It pays the school directly for tuition and fees, and pays you a monthly housing allowance as well as a book stipend of up to $1,000 annually, depending on how many credit hours you are enrolled in. The monthly housing allowance is paid based on several factors: if you are taking courses online or in-person (hybrid), the zip code of the course location where the class is taught, your percentage of eligibility, and your rate of pursuit (how many credit hours you’re taking in the term). To help you explore your options and compare universities or course locations, you should visit the GI Bill Comparison Tool.

If you are using Chapter 33 (PGIB) benefits and your class has started, but the VA has not paid your tuition and fees balance, it could be because the Veterans Certification Office (VCO), or equivalent entity, is required to process your certification in two steps. This is called dual certification, where the institution only reports the number of credit hours on the original submission. Once the add-drop period for your course has ended, a second certification requesting the tuition, fees, and Yellow Ribbon (if applicable) will be submitted.

Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program or Chapter 35: 
The Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program provides beneficiaries with up to 36 months of education benefits. Eligibility for this chapter of benefits extend to spouses and dependents of servicemembers who were either killed while on active-duty or became permanently disabled due to their service.

The benefit is paid out directly to you as a monthly stipend, the amount of which depends on your training time. Here is the link to the current pay rates for this chapter of benefits. Because this benefit is paid to you as a stipend, you are responsible for making tuition and fee payments directly to the institution. 

Montgomery GI Bill ®¹ - Selected Reserve or Chapter 1606:
The Montgomery GI Bill®¹ - Selected Reserve provides beneficiaries with up to 36 months of education benefits. Eligibility for this chapter of benefits requires at least two years of active service. But the exact length of required service may vary by branch of the military.

The benefit is paid out directly to you as a monthly stipend, the amount of which depends on your training time. Here is the link to the current pay rates for this chapter of benefits. Because this benefit is paid to you as a stipend, you are responsible for making tuition and fee payments directly to the institution.  

Marine Gunnery Sergeant  John David Fry – Fry scholarship: 
The MGS Fry Scholarship provides beneficiaries with up to 36 months of education benefits. It is a scholarship for children and spouses of veterans who died in the line of duty, on or after September 11, 2001, while serving in one of the Armed Forces, or was a member of the Selected Reserve who died from a service-connected disability. 

The benefit pays out the same way as the Post-9/11 GI Bill®¹. It pays the school directly for tuition and fees, and pays you a monthly housing allowance as well as a book stipend of up to $1,000 annually, depending on how many credit hours you are enrolled in. The monthly housing allowance is paid based on several factors: if you are taking courses online or in-person (hybrid), the zip code of the course location where the class is taught, your percentage of eligibility, and your rate of pursuit (how many credit hours you’re taking in the term). To help you explore your options and compare universities or course locations, you should visit the GI Bill Comparison Tool.

Veteran Readiness & Employment – Chapter 31: 
The Veteran Readiness & Employment program (formerly Vocational Rehabilitation & Employment) provides veterans with a service-connected disability rating of at least 10%, with employment and training options. This benefit program is personalized, you will work closely with your Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC) during this entire process. Benefit payment for this program can vary so it is best to apply, meet with your counselor, and plan your academic career based on the evaluation you receive from the VA. The VRC will be required to submit an authorization to the school, ahead of your registration to ensure eligibility and approval for the courses you are taking.

What Happens if I Withdraw from Courses?

If you withdraw from a course or stop participating, the VA will use the date you withdrew to determine the debt you owe for MHA (Monthly Housing Allowance) and/or the book stipend. The VA may pay a prorated portion of your tuition and fees if you submit acceptable mitigating circumstances. Otherwise, the VA may assign the full debt for the courses you withdrew from. The VA can only pay a prorated tuition, fee, and Yellow Ribbon amount based on your withdrawal date. You will need to review rules at institutions you are considering, to ensure they meet your needs.

Why do I Owe the VA a Debt?

Not participating in courses may result in a failure for non-attendance (FN) grade, the VCO is required to report your last date of participation to the VA, who will then request a refund of the prorated funds. You will owe the balance to the institution. In addition, you may owe the VA a balance for unearned monthly housing allowance and book stipend.

Which Courses Will Be Covered by GI Bill Benefits?

Review your Academic Advisement Report carefully each term and reach out to an advisor if you need assistance selecting courses within your degree plan. VCO may deny courses that are not within your degree plan and are not prerequisites for required courses within your program.

Also, pay attention to the number of lower and upper-level credit hours required for your degree completion. A lower-level course may look like it fits into your AAR, but the requirement needs to be satisfied by an upper-level course to reach the required upper-level requirement of the program. 

¹ GI Bill is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. More information about education benefits offered by VA is available on the U.S. government GI Bill website.

Reference on this webpage to any third-party entity or product does not constitute or imply endorsement by UMGC nor does it constitute or imply endorsement of UMGC by the third party.