V.A stands for Veteran Affairs. It is the department of the United States of America and it is officially referred to as the United States Department of Veteran Affairs (V.A). This department takes care of providing health services to eligible veterans. These services are lifelong health care services. Other than health care benefits, they also provide non-healthcare benefits like disability compensation, education assistance, home loans, insurance, rehabilitation and burial, and memorial services. Let us know more detail about ‘Does The VA Pay For College?’.
Does The VA Pay For College?
V.A pays for the college fees of qualifying veterans and their families. This is called the GI bill benefits. It helps to pay the college fees and also provide career guidance and helps to find the right schools and training programs.
History of V.A
Veteran Affairs or United States department of veteran affairs (V.A). It was formed on March 15, 1989. It comes under the control of the United States federal government. The main function of this organization is to help the veterans after their service time.
V.A has three divisions
- Veterans health administration – takes care of providing all forms of health care to the veterans.
- Veterans benefit administration – takes care of the registration of veterans and their eligibility to receive these benefits.
- National cemetery administration – Burial and memorial services and also maintains the VA cemetery.
There is a separate center for women in the Department of veteran affairs called the center for women veterans. It was established in 1994 and its primary objective is to
- Raise awareness to treat women veterans with respect.
- Advocate changes for recognizing the contributions of women veterans.
- Supervise the health care and benefits of women veterans.
V.A education assistance: Does The VA Pay For College?
V.A provides assistance to pay for college fees. There are many programs to help pay the fees and provide other educational and health benefits. It is commonly known as the CGI bill. It was started in 1944 and has helped many veterans since then, to pay the fees for college and other educational programs.
Post-9/11 GI bill
The post – 9/11 GI bill or chapter 33 helps pay for the education expenses. Veterans who remained on active duty after 10th September 2001 are eligible to get the benefits of the Post 9/11 GI bill.
To be eligible to receive the benefits of this bill, the veterans must fulfill at least one of the requirements
- Served at least 90 days on active duty on or after 11th September 2001 (no: of days can either be at once or with breaks)
- Received a Purple Heart and honorably discharged, the award must be received on or after 2001, 11th September.
- Served for 30 days at the minimum and discharged honorably with a service-connected disability on or after 11th September 2001. ( no day served can be continuous or with gaps).
- Dependent child using benefits transferred by a veteran who is qualified.
Benefits of Post 9/11 GI bill:
- If the applicant for the scheme qualifies for maximum benefits, then he/she will receive assistance for the full cost of public, in-state tuition and fees. The rates for private and foreign schools are capped. The rates will be updated annually.
- If the applicant is in school more than half the time, then the program will base the monthly housing allowance on the cost of living where the institution is located.
- Money for books and other things will be offered. Nearly $1000 per academic year.
- Money will be offered to help move from rural areas to go to schools. It is a one-time payment of $500 and may qualify if you live in a country with 6 or less than that per square mile, or you need to move at least 500 miles to attend classes or no other option than to fly by plane to attend the classes.
Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty (MGIB-AD)
This is another type of GI bill that will help the veterans to pay for training and education. The eligibility to get these benefits is a minimum of 2 years of service on active duty. There are some extra requirements that you need to be fulfilled and these requirements are divided into 4 categories. The applicant needs to be under any one of these categories to be able to get the benefits.
Category 1
- Have a high school diploma, GED, or college credit (12 hours)
- Entered active duty after 30th June 1985. (first time)
- For the first 12 months of service, the military pay was reduced by $100/month.
You have served continuously without any break, for any one of the following periods
- 3 years
- 2 years (if it was stated in the agreement while enlisting)
- 4 years if you entered the Selected Reserve within 1 year of leaving active duty
Category 2
- Have a diploma from high school, GED, or college credit (12 hours)
- Entered active duty before 1st January 1977(or under delayed enlistment program before January 2, 1978)
- Served a minimum of 1 day between 19th October 1984 and 30th June 1985 and remained in active duty through June 30, 1988.
- If you entered the selected reserve within 1 year of leaving active duty and served 4 years, then you must have served through June 30, 1987.
- Have a minimum of 1 day of entitlement remaining under the Vietnam era GI bill as of 31st December 1989.
Category 3
All given requirements must be true
- Diploma from high school, GED, college credit(12 hours)
- Does not qualify for MGIB under categories 1 and 2.
- Reduced military pay before separation by $1200.
Any one of the requirements must be true
- On activity duty on 30th, September 1990, and separated without your choice after 2nd, February 1991.
- Separated without choice on or after 30th, November 1993.
- Voluntarily separated under VSI or SSB program.
Category 4
All the given must be true
- Diploma from high school, GED, or college credits (12 hours)
- Received lump sum of $1200 or pay reduced by $100 a month
All the given conditions must be satisfied
- Chose MGIB before 9th, October 1997
- On active duty on 9th, October 1996 and has some amount left in a VEAP account on that date.
- Chose MGIB between 9th, October 1996 and 9th, July 1997 and entered national guard duty between July 1, 1985, and November 28, 1989
How to apply for the VA benefits and GI bill?
Before applying, you should find out if you are eligible for the benefits and you need to collect the necessary documents.
You can apply using two methods, offline and online methods. In the online method, you need to answer several questions and fill in all the details they ask for. Important documents needed to fill the applications are
- Military history
- Education
- Detail about the school or facility you selected
- Social security number
- Bank account direct deposit information
After completing, select submit to apply for review, and within 30 days you will know the decision made by them. If accepted, you will receive an award letter or certificate of eligibility (COE)
In the offline method, you can either send by mail, call 888 442 4551 and request an application form, fill it and mail it to the V.A regional claims office. You can also ask for help from an employee in your VA regional office or with the help of an accredited representative – a trained representative.
Conclusion
Now we’ve learnt about ‘Does The VA Pay For College?’, The Veteran Affairs helps the veterans and their families to help pay college fees along with many other benefits like loans and insurance, disability pensions, and memorial and burial services. A separate department was allocated to help veterans after their service time. The V.A also has separate centers for women to monitor and give the benefits they need.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
- Other benefits and services provided by Veteran Affairs?
Service member benefits, family member benefits, employment, housing, pension, health care, and disability.
- Can a person choose more than one education benefit?
No, a person can choose only one program.
