Many veterans choose to attend college after service and can receive benefits.
Returning veterans have several options for help paying their tuition and other education-related costs if they choose to attend college. The GI Bill, Federal Work Study programs and the Veteran's Education Assistance Program are the most popular and generally contribute the most money toward education costs. Veterans can call the Veteran's Affairs Education service line at 888-442-4551 to see if they qualify for these programs,
GI Bill
The Montgomery GI Bill helps service members pay for education-related costs. This benefit is worth almost $50,000. If a service member attends college full time, he can receive a monthly stipend that, for 2009-2010, equaled $1,368 for up to 36 months. To qualify, veterans must have served at least two years on active duty. The GI Bill will reimburse only the actual tuition and expenses for service members still on active duty.
Work Study Program
Many veterans with service-connected disabilities are eligible for federal work study programs under which they earn an hourly wage comparable to the federal minimum wage. They can set the number of hours they want to work during school. The job will be related to Veteran's Affairs work: processing paperwork at a VA office, performing outreach services or performing services at a VA medical center. The work depends on the veteran's interests and the work available.
Educational Assistance Program
The Veterans Educational Assistance Program is available to service members who decide to make contributions from their military pay toward education costs. For every $1 a veteran contributes, the government contributes $2. These contributions can be used toward any certificate, degree or vocational education program.
Tags: Assistance Program, service members, active duty, attend college, choose attend, choose attend college
