Air Force Tuition Assistance

• $250 per semester credit hour

• $166 per quarter credit hour

Each airman can use up to $4,500 annually of TA funding. If tuition costs more than the credit hour cap, or annual amount, then airmen eligible for either Chapter 30 or 33 of the GI Bill may use the Tuition Top-Up program to cover costs exceeding TA limits. While Top-Up costs do reduce GI Bill entitlement, it does so at a much slower rate.

For a course to qualify for Tuition Assistance funding, it must be in the Air Force Portal system and the school must be accredited by a U.S. Department of Education-recognized accrediting agency. The types of courses that are elligible for TA funding vary from technical to academic, and may be at a two or four-year school, as well as distance or online schools.

TA for the Air Force pays up to first advance degree or master's degree (as appropriate) and it cannot pay for degrees of any kind at a lateral or lower level than the one that is already held.

Air Force Tuition Assistance Program Eligibility Requirements

Air Force Tuition Assistance is available to all active duty and Air Reserve servicemembers, along with U.S. Code Title 10 or Title 32 activated Active Guard Reserve (AGR) airmen and Air National Guardsmen. This includes both commissioned officers and enlisted personnel. Commissioned officers may incur an additional service commitment for using the Tuition Assistance Program.

Air Force TA Application Rules

Apply for Air Force TA using these six steps:

1. Select a reason for the request
2. Select civilian school name
3. Enter course dates
4. Enter course information
5. Enter registration fees
6. Verify TA information and submit

Airmen may not apply, if:

• A degree plan is not on file
• Courses have already started or will start more than 30 days out
• Courses are rated at a lower degree level than the one already held
• It is beyond the course suspense date
• A grade has not been received within 60 days of the course ending date
• The education record personal data is missing

For airmen enrolled in the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF), some degree exceptions apply, such as:

• TA can be used for a CCAF degree regardless of current education level
• TA funding can be used for a civilian associate's degree, even when one already has a CCAF associate's degree

Students using Tuition Assistance in the Air Force are no longer required to have their supervisors sign their TA form. However, it is always advisable that students discuss a class schedule and education goal with a supervisor.

Air Force TA Program Rules

Tuition Assistance users may still drop or change a class without penalty if the class is dropped within the drop period, and the school and base education offices are notified. If dropped outside the drop period, the school and base education offices must still be notified, but the student will then be responsible for paying for the cost of the course. The exception to this rule is when the course must be dropped due to military duty requirements.

An incomplete grade must clear the school's education office by the time set by the school or 12 months from the term ending date, whichever comes first. Failing to provide a grade also makes the student liable for the course cost.