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GI Bill Information: Ask the Expert BlogExpert Answers to Your GI Bill Benefits Questions Topic: Tuition Assistance Top-Up
September 14th, 2010
by GIBillExpert
by GIBillExpert
I am working on getting my degree while overseas still on active duty. Distance learning is really my only option and I only have time to take one or two classes a term. How would using Top Up along with TA affect my total GI bill entitlements considering it would only be about 300 dollars a term? Would I lose what was left after 36 months? If I am going to be doing this for about the next 2 years( a few distance classes a term) and have to use Top Up which GI bill is better? All of the information I find is assuming full time students. Thank you so much if you can clear up this confusion. — Jeff S.
That’s a good question. Figuring out how the Top-Up system works can be a little confusing. However, you’re right in assuming that it takes off of your 36 months of total GI Bill entitlements at the full rate, even though you’re only getting limited assistance from the GI Bill. This is one reason that it pays to save your GI Bill for after you separate from the military, if you can swing it. Of course, if you need the money for the courses, then it can be a real life-saver.
It doesn’t matter much which GI Bill you choose to use, because either one will only pay the difference between TA and the cost of the tuition and fees. However, if you select the new Post 9/11 GI Bill, remember that you can’t ever reverse that decision, so you should use the Montgomery GI Bill if you want to reserve the choice to use that bill after you get out of the military.
July 30th, 2010
by Ron Kness
by Ron Kness
Can I use my GI Bill while on active duty? If so how do I use it to pay for a course? — Clarence
You can Clarence, but I would suggest using Tuition Assistance first as it doesn’t cost you anything, if you stay under the $250 per credit and $4,500 annual cap.
If your tuition costs more than what the VA will pay, or you hit your annual cap early and you want to take more classes, then submit VA Form 22-1990 by using the VONAPP Website or download the form, fill it out and submit it using the instruction on the form.
You also could use a combination of TA and your GI Bill – it’s called Tuition Top-Up. If your tuition exceeds what TA pays, your service branch still pays the full amount, but the VA pays the difference back to your branch. In turn, the VA converts the amount they had to pay into months and days of benefit and deducts that amount from your GI Bill benefits. It is a great way to extend your GI Bill education benefits.
June 25th, 2010
by Ron Kness
by Ron Kness
I have been hearing that students attending on-line only classes may be eligible for 1/2 the housing stipend, do you have any info? I will be retiring in Dec. 2010 and the degree I am pursuing is not offered at any of the colleges where I am retiring to. I am using Tuition Assistance (TA) while I am active, will that be deducted from my Montgomery GI/Post-9/11 GI Bill? — Sandra
Yes Sandra, I have been hearing about online students getting a partial Post 9/11 GI Bill housing allowance; it is part of the Post 9/11 GI Bill Fix legislation. Right now, it is hung up due to an unexpected $33 million price tag associated with it. Good luck trying to decipher what it really says.
In case it doesn’t pass, the way around not getting the housing allowance is to take one on-campus class related to your degree plan at a college near you. One class is all it takes to get the housing allowance.
Tuition Assistance in itself does not come out of your GI Bill benefits, as that is paid by your branch of service. If you are using Tuition Assistance Top-Up, along with TA, the top-up portion paid by the VA to your branch of service, is deducted from your GI Bill benefits.
March 29th, 2010
by Ron Kness
by Ron Kness
Hi, I am a Army Reserve Warrant Officer that recently started school. I have been told by VA Reps at my school that I cannot receive Post 9/11 benefits if I receive Tuition Assistance. On the flip side of that coin, I have been told by Tuition Assistance folks that this only applies to the National Guard Troops and that TA will cover remaining 30 percent tuition cost that Post 9/11 won’t cover due to eligibility. I have attempted to research this subject for policy and procedures along with asking many people. I have not found anything clear in policy and everyone I talk to seems know about as much as I do. Can you shed some light on this subject? Thank you! — Mark
Actually Mark, from what I can find, my vote is with the TA folks. Under the Post 9/11 GI Bill, the VA should pay your tuition and fees up to your 70% tier level (as long as this amount is lower than the maximum in-state public school maximum) along with 70% of the housing allowance and book stipend.
Or another way to proceed is the have TA pick up the tuition and fees and a the Post 9/11 GI Bill pick up 70% of the remaining amount along with 70%of your housing allowance and book stipend. Doing it this way would make your GI Bill benefits go further. The TA folks probably suggested doing it the first way as that would reduce how much they would have to pay. Doing it my way would increase their costs, but my position is so what. Both TA and the GI Bill are your benefits and you should use them for the maximum benefit to you.
Generally you get your Tuition Assistance approved first and include a copy of the approval with your VA Form 22-1990 application for Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits application.
March 25th, 2010
by Jeffery Anderson
by Jeffery Anderson
I want to enroll in an online program which is a certification for billing and coding. My tuition is $1995.00 and it would be covered by my tuition assistance. The admissions officer in the school told me that I won’t be qualified for the Montgomery GI Bill since the tuition is covered by my tuition assistance. Is that true? I thought they were separate benefits? Lora
Hi Lora, I believe there may just be some confusion with terms here. I believe what your admissions officer meant was that since you are using Tuition Assistance to pay for the certification program, then you will not be able to apply to have your Montgomery GI Bill benefits to pay for the cost at the same time. They are separate programs, and you can actually use the Montgomery GI Bill Program while using Tuition Assistance, but only if you are using it as Tuition Assistance Top Up, where the MGIB will supplement the part of your tuition that might not be covered by Tuition Assistance. Service members must be eligible for Montgomery GI Bill-Active Duty benefits to use the top up option, and they have to have been in the military for at least 2 years.
In your case that should not be an issue, as Tuition Assistance is covering all of your costs, but some service members take classes that the costs are not entirely covered by Tuition Assistance. So you are not losing your MGIB eligibility or benefits, and should be able to use them in the future. You just can’t use them to pay for a program that is already being paid for by the government.
March 9th, 2010
by Ron Kness
by Ron Kness
I am currently serving active duty in the United States Air Force. I have a particularly complex situation that has not been addressed with a straight forward answer. Hopefully someone can help! I enlisted in the AF after completing my BSBA with the hopes of completing my MBA while serving a 4-year enlistment. I have currently served 1-year and was recently accepted to online universities’ Masters in Accounting and Financial Management program. Much to my dismay I have found that TA only covers $250 per credit hour, which is far below the credit hour costs of every MBA program. I would like to use my GI Bill to cover the rest of the cost however, with only a year of Active Duty service completed I have found that I am only eligible for a certain percentage of my benefits. I have paid into the Montgomery GI Bill and I am eligible for the Post 9/11 GI Bill. Which program, if any, would cover the large tuition costs remaining after my TA benefit is exhausted. — Brandon
Brandon, you will have to run the numbers and see which one will end up paying you more; I don’t know from your question how much your tuition is, except it is over the $250 per credit hour that Tuition Assistance (TA) pays.
The program to pay the difference is called Tuition Top-up. Here is how it works. The VA will pay the difference up to what the GI Bill would pay between the cost of your tuition and what TA pays. Using Top-Up does reduce your GI Bill benefits.
Under the Montgomery GI Bill, the monthly payment is $1,368 per month or $5,472 per semester. For each month the VA has to pay $1,368, they reduce your GI Bill entitlement by one month. The problem right now is you are not eligible to use Top-Up until you have at least two years of active duty time.
Under the Post 9/11 GI Bill, you only need 90 days to qualify at the minimum amount of 40%. If you have only served one year (and IADT time doesn’t count), you are probably at the 50% (6 months, but less than 12) rate. The Post 9/11 GI Bill would pay up to 50% of the maximum in-state tuition/fees for the state where your university’s office is located. Because you are taking only an online course and on active duty, you would not qualify for the housing allowance and only 50% of the $1,000 per year book stipend.
One other option to ask about is the Yellow Ribbon Program. If your school has a Yellow Ribbon Agreement with the VA, your school could pick up to 50% of the tuition amount not covered by the VA and the VA would pay an equal amount. This could leave you with very little out-of-pocket left to pay. What I don’t know is if you can use the Yellow Ribbon Program in conjunction with both TA and Tuition Top-Up. You would have to ask the VA about that.
Run some cost scenarios Brandon, before making your decision. Generally speaking, most service-members and veterans taking only online programs come out better using the Montgomery GI Bill.
March 5th, 2010
by Jeffery Anderson
by Jeffery Anderson
I used up the Montgomery GI Bill and $150 kicker by 2005. I came back on active duty to the Marines in 2007. I understand that I will still receive 12 months of the Post 9/11 GI Bill. Is this correct? And will I ever be eligible for the entire Post 9/11 GI Bill? 1stLt Chris B.
Hi Chris, It doesn’t seem that long ago that I was a 1stLt in the Corps, 30 years goes by fast. Congratulations on using your Montgomery GI Bill benefits, I talk to so many veterans who never used their benefits, and now wish they had. You are correct, you can become eligible for 12 months of the Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. It sounds like you have been back on active duty for just about 36 months, so that would make you eligible for the 12 months of full Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. That is assuming that none of your time back on active duty has been a requirement of any education benefits you received, such as ROTC scholarship funds. Any required time on active duty due to an education program doesn’t count towards GI Bill eligibility.
You will not be able to earn the 36 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. Service members who qualify for two different GI Bill programs can get a maximum of 48 months of benefits between the two programs. However, you may be able to combine those 12 months of Post 9/11 benefits with benefits from the Yellow Ribbon Program, which could give you quite a bit of tuition assistance for those 12 months.
February 12th, 2010
by Jeffery Anderson
by Jeffery Anderson
When I first joined the Navy two years ago I turned down the GI Bill because I had no interest in going back to school. Now I’ve decided that I would like to attend school after my enlistment. Is it still possible for me to take advantage of the GI Bill? Jeff
Hi Jeff, Yes, you will be eligible for full benefits of the Post 9/11 GI Bill if you complete 36 months of active duty service and receive an Honorable Discharge. The GI Bill which you turned down was the Montgomery GI Bill, which had to be paid into the first year you are on active duty, in order to be eligible for the benefits. The Post 9/11 GI Bill has taken the place of the Montgomery GI Bill, and does not require contributions from service members. When you are ready to use it, you simply apply for a Certificate of Eligibility at the VONAPP website.
Keep in mind that you can also take classes while you are on active duty. I spoke with a Navy Chief today who has earned a bachelor’s degree and a master’s degree while on active duty, and he used Tuition Assistance to pay for it. The use of online classes means you can even take classes at sea. Go to the Navy College website and check it out. Even if you don’t finish your degree while on active duty, the credits you earn can be applied to your degree at another school. You can even get college credits for the training and military education you get in the Navy. Take advantage of the military education benefits available to you while you are on active duty, and you will still have the Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits waiting for you when you get out. Tuition Assistance is a great benefit, and I hate to see service members not take advantage of it.
February 12th, 2010
by Jeffery Anderson
by Jeffery Anderson
I am an active duty officer (Army Major) serving in Afghanistan. I used the MGIB and Tuition Assistance back in ‘02 to earn an MBA. I have recently been accepted to Stanford’s Certified Project Management Certificate program, and I believe that I may be able to use TA and MGIB against this program. I have 17 months of the old MGIB left. Any help? This is a great site! Chris
Hi Chris, Thanks for the compliment, we try to help. I am not sure if Army Tuition Assistance will pay for the certificate program or not. Stanford should definitely be on the list of approved education programs, but Army Tuition Assistance will not fund a program that is equal to, or less than the level of education you already have, and it will not fund a program past a master’s degree. Based on that, I have my doubts as to whether you can get Tuition Assistance for the program. This may be a situation where you should just go to GoArmyEd and apply for Tuition Assistance, and see what reply you get. Keep in mind that if you are approved for Tuition Assistance, you will probably have to extend your time on active duty.
If you can’t use Tuition Assistance, you can use your MGIB. If you use all of your Montgomery GI Bill benefits, you should still be eligible for another 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits, due to the period your active duty service has covered. You could use your 17 months of MGIB, and still have 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits, or you could convert your MGIB to the Post 9/11 GI Bill now. You would only have 17 months of benefits if you convert now, as compared to 29 months the other way, but those 17 months of Post 9/11 benefits might cover more of the costs of the program, which I’m sure is expensive. You should take a look at the cost of the certificate program, and then take a look at how much in benefits each GI Bill might provide you for the program, and decide which way is the best for you. Of course, if you are approved for Tuition Assistance, then that should cover a portion of the costs prior to you having to apply your GI Bill benefits to it. When you are deciding which GI Bill will best suit your needs, remember to look at what they can provide while you are still on active duty, rather than after you leave the military, as the amounts and benefits sometimes differ.
February 11th, 2010
by Jeffery Anderson
by Jeffery Anderson
I was active duty Navy for 4 years. I am currently going to start using my New GI Bill in a couple of months, but plan on either going active duty reserves or active duty army after school. Can I earn another GI Bill? Nicholas
Hi Nicholas, Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way. You will only get one New GI Bill to use. However, that doesn’t mean that your education has to stop. If you are definitely planning on going back onto active duty, then you have several options available for getting additional education benefits.
You mention that you are getting ready to go to school in a few months. You can use your New GI Bill to attend school and earn a degree, and when you go back onto active duty, use Tuition Assistance to earn a master’s degree. Or you could go onto active duty before using your GI Bill, and use Tuition Assistance to earn your bachelor’s degree. When you leave the military again, you would still have your full benefits of the New GI Bill to use, and you could combine them with benefits from the Yellow Ribbon Program to earn a master’s degree, or even a doctorate. So just because you only get one GI Bill, doesn’t mean you can’t reach your educational goals. I talk to quite a few people who have earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees while on active duty. Many of them used online classes to attend school during their off-duty hours.
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