Can you earn the GI Bill twice?
Answer: Yes, like the MGIB you are generally entitled to 36 months of educational assistance. If you are entitled to more than one GI Bill program, you may be eligible for a maximum of 48 months of entitlement when using benefits under two or more GI Bill programs.
Yes. After earning your first degree, you can use any GI Bill benefits you have left over to pay for classes for another degree.
How many total months of VA education benefits can I get? You may be able to get a maximum of 48 months of VA education benefits—not including Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) benefits. But many applicants are eligible for only 36 months.
Under the current VA rules, veterans must give up their MGIB if using their Post 9/11, so they only get 36 months total in eligibility. However, by using all 36 months of their MGIB first, they can get an additional 12 months of Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits.
Restrictions on Using Multiple Education Benefits
Of note, veterans can only receive payments for one program at a time. This means that you couldn't have the Post-9/11 GI Bill pay your school directly and give you a housing allowance while also receiving direct MGIB-AD tuition payments.
Unfortunately, many people believe that once you apply for benefits you have to remain enrolled in school to get the full benefit. Thankfully that's not true, you can use the GI Bill for any period of time, take time off and reapply to use it again at a later date.
Veterans with certain extenuating circ*mstances may be eligible to receive an extension on their 10-15 year eligibility time limit for their GI Bill. For example: You experienced an illness or disability that prevented you from attending school. You served a later period active duty for 90 consecutive days or more.
You might be surprised to know that the GI Bill is only one of hundreds of programs to help veterans afford a college degree. Your other options include scholarships, veterans discounts, state veteran education and job training programs, vocational rehabilitation, and federal student aid, loans and grants.
- Save your benefits for your most expensive tuition bill.
- Take at least one class per semester in person.
- Earn as many credits as you can per semester.
- Beware of misleading schools.
- Submit the FAFSA.
What is the maximum GI Bill amount?
For the 2023–2024 academic year, the Post-9/11 GI Bill allows VA to pay the actual net cost of tuition and fees not to exceed the in-state amounts for students pursuing training at public schools; $27,120.05 for students training at private and foreign schools; $27,120.05 for students training at non-degree granting ...
The GI Bill® is not impacted by the FAFSA. If you receive grants or loans through FAFSA you will still receive the same amount of the GI Bill® as if you did not. Many undergraduate students are eligible for federal grants and we highly recommend that undergraduate students file a FAFSA.
Q: Is the GI Bill considered Financial Aid? A: Not in the traditional sense. In most cases, the school's financial aid department does not consider the GI Bill financial aid. This means that you are eligible for student loans, scholarships, and Pell Grants along with the GI Bill.
You're eligible for 100% of the full benefit if you meet at least 1 of these requirements: You served on active duty for a total of at least 1,095 days (at least 36 months), or. You served on active duty and received a Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001, or.
How long does the GI Bill last? Under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, if you served at least 36 months of active duty, then you're eligible for coverage of up to 36 months of college or career training. The 36 months of classes or training won't have to be consecutive — but if your service ended before Jan.
Servicemembers and honorably discharged Veterans who were awarded a Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001 will be entitled to Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits at the 100-percent benefit level for up to 36 months.
The housing allowance can be substantial, depending on where you go to school; to some, that may sound like a great addition to a monthly income that could be used to qualify for a home loan. But as we'll explore below, you cannot use the GI Bill as income for loan approval purposes in typical cases.
Benefits will stop on the day the student exhaust his or her remaining entitlement. If you are a dependent, there is no exceeding the 36th month of the Post 9/11 GI Bill®, and payments will stop mid semester if your eligibility is exhausted.
You have 10 years to use your Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB) benefits after you separate from the military. If you don't use your benefits in this time frame, you may be able to get a refund of part or all of your payments into this program.
Each STEM extension scholarship provides up to nine additional months of education benefits or $30,000, according to the VA. The Forever GI Bill STEM extension helps veterans avoid debt related to extra coursework specific to their STEM degrees, such as an extra year to finish their degree requirements.
Does the GI Bill cover 4 years of college?
Under the Post-9/11 GI Bill, veterans who serve at least 36 months of active duty are eligible for coverage of up to 36 months of college or career training. That's enough for nine months of education every year for four years. Benefits also include a monthly housing allowance and $1,000 stipend for books and supplies.
At its core, the legislation lifts the 15-year expiration on using the GI Bill for tuition assistance, thus making it a lifetime benefit for all active military members and retroactive for veterans who retired after Jan. 1, 2013.
In most cases, the answer is no, you cannot get a refund for your GI Bill. But some veterans may be eligible to receive a Montgomery GI Bill refund once they have used their entire Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit.
Do Online Students Get BAH? Yes, the Post-9/11 Veterans Education Assistance Improvements Act (GI Bill 2.0) made this change effective Oct. 1, 2011. However, the MHA for online coursework is lower than the MHA for in-person class attendance.
The Post-9/11 GI Bill can pay your full resident tuition at a public school. If you are attending a private or foreign school it will pay up to $27,120.05 for the 2023-2024 academic year. An academic year lasts from Aug.
Your GI Bill payments and Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) are based on your training time. If your withdrawal moves you from one group to another you may have an overpayment with the VA that you must repay. If your withdrawal results in no training time change you can stop reading here, no problems.
You can work when enrolled, or during breaks between terms. You can arrange with VA to work any number of hours you want during your enrollment. But, the total number of hours you work can't be more than 25 times the number of weeks in your enrollment period.
Why is my monthly GI Bill payment less than my monthly rate? Your monthly GI Bill payment may be less than your monthly rate for one of these reasons: You attended classes for only part of the month. Classes often begin and end somewhere in the middle of a month, instead of on the first and last day of a month.
The Post-9/11 GI Bill also pays a monthly housing allowance based on the ZIP code of the location of the school or campus where you attend the majority of your classes. This stipend currently averages $1,934.80 a month but can exceed $2,700 depending on where you go to school.
The Post 9/11 GI Bill pays for “36 months” of benefits, not a bachelor's degree. Whatever you can squeeze out in those 36 months is all up to you. If you don't have summer plans consider taking summer classes. They are shorter and you earn the same amount of credit for the same classes during normal semesters.
Is the GI Bill unlimited?
There's no longer an expiration date. Previously, veterans had to use their Post-9/11 GI Bill within 15 years of their last 90-day period of active-duty service. That requirement is going away. This portion of the law will apply to anyone who left the military after January 1, 2013.
Eligibility for 100% of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits
You're eligible for 100% of the full benefit if you meet at least 1 of these requirements: You served on active duty for a total of at least 1,095 days (at least 36 months), or. You served on active duty and received a Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001, or.
So, which GI Bill is better? In most scenarios, the Post-9/11 GI Bill offers veteran students more financial assistance than the MGIB, especially when pursuing a standard, four-year degree at an accredited higher learning institution or passing your benefits to a dependent. There are a few exceptions, however.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
What Is Transferability? The Post-9/11 GI Bill allows Service members to transfer unused education benefits to immediate family members. This applies to officer or enlisted, active duty and Selected Reserve. Qualifying immediate family members are spouses and children.
Payments you receive for education, training, or subsistence under any law administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) are tax free. Do not include these payments as income on your federal tax return.
Thus former or current members of the National Guard or Reserves are not considered to be veterans unless they had prior or subsequent service with an active component of the Armed Forces. (Reservists called to active duty by Executive Order qualify as veterans.)
Post-9/11 GI Bill® Payments and Financial Aid
Students receiving VA benefits are eligible for Federal and State financial aid. GI Bill® funding is not reduced by the amount of Pell Grant or Federal Direct Stafford Loans the student is eligible to receive.
Quick information on Pell grants: A Federal Pell Grant, unlike a loan, does not have to be repaid. The maximum Federal Pell Grant award is $6,895 for the 2022–23 award year (July 1, 2022, to June 30, 2023).
The federal government administers a variety of programs and grants that provide financial aid to eligible military students. For example, you may be eligible for a Federal Pell Grant or the Iraq and Afghanistan Service Grant.
But to get the 48 months of benefits from both GI Bills, the 36 months from the MGIB must be first exhausted. Then switch to the Post 9/11 GI Bill to use the additional 12 months of benefits.
Can you use both Montgomery and Post 9 11 GI Bill?
Q: Can I combine my Montgomery and Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits? A: No. Servicemembers and veterans are allowed to only use one education benefit program at a time. However, in some cases you may be able to use the Post-9/11 GI Bill when you have exhausted your Montgomery GI Bill.
Eligibility for 100% of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits
You're eligible for 100% of the full benefit if you meet at least 1 of these requirements: You served on active duty for a total of at least 1,095 days (at least 36 months), or. You served on active duty and received a Purple Heart on or after September 11, 2001, or.
If you served on active duty for less than 1,095 days (36 months), you're eligible for only part of the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefit. We base the percentage you're eligible for on the total amount of time you served on active duty (with or without breaks in service). We call this your “eligibility tier.”
Part-time students may want to consider MGIB benefits, as Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits don't provide housing benefits or the same amount of tuition assistance. Both can provide benefits to spouses or dependents of those who qualify.
The Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits can cover your cost of tuition for a master's degree if you already have an undergraduate degree. It will cover 100% full resident tuition if you opt for a public school.
Education and Training
The Harry W. Colmery Veterans Educational Assistance Act, also known as the “Forever GI Bill,” will bring significant changes to Veterans education benefits over the coming years. Most changes enhance or expand education benefits for Veterans, servicemembers, families, and survivors.
Use the VA's GI Bill comparison tool to research schools before you enroll, including their graduation rates. Generally, you can't recoup your GI Bill benefits once you use them, though there may be exceptions for some school closures.
Yes, you can use your GI Bill to get a second degree, or more. The GI Bill can be used to pay for education such as a secondary bachelor's degree, or a graduate degree in a field related to your bachelor's degree.
GI Bill® Benefits
Undergraduate, graduate and doctoral degrees are covered. Additional benefits, including a housing allowance (BAH) and book stipend, are paid directly to the veteran.
