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Can I Get a Another Degree With My GI Bill, If I Already Have One?

July 14th, 2011
by Ron Kness
I graduated with a double major in technology education and elementary education before coming into the military. I will have served for the time to get the full GI Bill benefits and I also have the option to change it to the Post 9/11 GI Bill. When I get out of the military, I want to get into mechanical engineering and would have to get another bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering. Would the GI bill pay for that? Then a few years down the road I might be interested in pursuing a master’s degree as well. Could I use what is left over for that? — John

So it sounds like you currently have the Montgomery GI Bill John being you said you have the option to transfer to the Post 9/11 GI Bill. With either GI Bill, you could work toward a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering.

If your engineering degree is a five-year course (as many engineering programs are), then you might look at using your 36 months of the MGIB (which is enough time for four 9-month academic years) and then switch to the Post 9/11 GI Bill to get an additional 12 months, making five academic years of education. If your engineering program is only four years, you could use the extra year to work on a master’s degree. But, if you only plan on using just four years of your GI Bill, you might be better off switching to the Post 9/11 GI Bill right away to take advantage of the higher pay rate.

The MGIB pays a full-time student, having 3 years or more of service, $1,426 per month and the student has to pay tuition, fees and other education-related expenses. Under the Post 9/11 GI Bill, the VA pays your tuition/fees and you get the book stipend and a monthly housing stipend, which can be more than what the MGIB pays in itself, depending on the zip code of your school.

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Posted in New GI Bill | 2 Comments »

2 Responses to “Can I Get a Another Degree With My GI Bill, If I Already Have One?”

  1. Jarrod says:
    February 2, 2012 at 9:20 am

    I don’t understand how that works still. I need it explained more in depth. From my understanding you can only use one of the two only.

  2. Ron Kness says:
    February 6, 2012 at 8:21 am

    Let me explain it this way. If you qualify for both the Montgomery and Post 9/11 GI Bill, and you choose to use the Post 9/11 GI Bill, you give up your rights to use the Montgomery GI Bill. You can only use one GI Bill at a time. However, if you qualify for both, you could use up all of your MGIB benefits, then transfer to the Post 9/11 GI Bill and get an additional 12 months of benefits. You are not using both GI Bill at the same time as you have expended your MGIB before switching.

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