VA Education Benefits

Each Veteran Education Benefit has unique requirements and payment methods. You can review the different benefits to identify your potential eligibility, but the VA has the final decision on which benefit(s) you can use.

In certain situations, you may be eligible for more than one education benefit, but you can only use one benefit at a time for a single period of enrollment. The maximum combined VA educational benefits you can receive is 48 months.

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Chapter 30- Montgomery GI Bill®- Active Duty (MGIB-AD)

• Have a GED or High School Diploma.
• Entered active duty after June 30, 1985.
• Honorable discharge.
• Had your military pay reduced by $100 for the first 12 months of service.
• 2, 3, or 4 years of continuous active service (dependent on your agreement).
• Typically, eligible for 36 months, but may be able to get a maximum of 48 months of benefits.
• Payments are made as a monthly stipend to the student.
  • Student is still responsible for the bill with Millersville.
• Must certify your enrollment each month through the Verify Your Enrollment system.
• More Information- Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty.

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Chapter 31- Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E)

• Discharged under conditions other than dishonorable.
• Have a service-connected disability rating of at least 10% from the VA.
• No service length requirement
• Eligible for up to 48 months of benefits.
  • If you are eligible for both VR&E and another benefits, you may be able to get more benefits by using VR&E first.
• Receive a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor (VRC) through the VA to assist in transition from military to college life.
• Receive a monthly stipend paid directly to the student.
• Receive payment for required books and supplies.
• Receive full tuition and mandatory fees payment directly to the university.
  • Student is responsible for any housing or meal plan charges through the university if residing on campus.
• More Information- Veteran Readiness and Employment

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Chapter 33- Post 9/11 GI Bill®

• Served at least 90 aggregate days on active duty on or after September 11, 2001.
• Honorable discharge.
• Typically, eligible for 36 months, but may be able to get a maximum of 48 months of benefits.
• Receive a book stipend at the beginning of the semester of $41.67 per credit up to $1,000 for the year.
• Receive a Monthly Housing Allowance stipend each month if enrolled greater than halftime.
  • See Monthly Housing Allowance FAQ for more information.
• Receive tuition and mandatory fees payment directly to the university based on the payment percentage determined by the VA.
  • Student is responsible for any housing, meal plan charges, and tuition and fee charges not covered by the VA through the university.
• Benefit can be used by the servicemember or transferred to a spouse or dependent.
  • See Transfer benefit FAQ for more information.
• Must certify your enrollment each month with the VA via text message or email (depending on your opt in option when registering for the benefit).
  • If you do not receive the email or text message, you can certify with the A at 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551).
• More Information- Post 9/11 GI Bill

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Chapter 35- Survivors and Dependents Educational Assistance Program (DEA)

• For spouses or dependents of servicemembers who are totally and permanently disabled due to a service-connected disability or who died in the line of duty.
• Spouse or Dependent must be at least 18 years of age or older.
• Spouse or Dependent must have a GED or High School Diploma.
• Marital status of dependents of veterans or servicemembers does not affect eligibility for these benefits.
• Eligible for up to 36 months of benefits.
• Payments are made as a monthly stipend to the student.
  • Student is still responsible for the bill with Millersville.
• More Information- Survivors and Dependents Educational Assistance

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Chapter 1606- Montgomery GI Bill®- Selected Reserves (MGIB-SR)

• Agreed to service for a period after June 30, 1985.
• Agreed to a 6-year service in the Selected Reserves or are an officer in the Selected Reserves and agreed to 6 additional years from the initial obligation.
• Must have completed initial active-duty training.
• Have a GED or High School Diploma before finishing initial active-duty training.
• Remain in good standing while serving in an active Selected Reserve unit.
• Typically, eligible for 36 months, but may be able to get a maximum of 48 months of benefits.
• Payments are made as a monthly stipend to the student.
  • Student is still responsible for the bill with Millersville.
• Must Certify your enrollment each month through the Verify Your Enrollment system.
• More Information- Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve

Accessing your VA Education Benefits at Millersville University is simple. Just follow the 3 steps below to get started: 

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Step 1: Obtain your Certificate of Eligibility

New VA Benefit Users 

• Veterans and Dependents who have never used their benefits, must apply with the VA to use them. You will receive a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) that you will need to provide to the School Certifying Official.

Previous VA Benefit Users

• If you have recently previously used education benefits, you can provide a copy of your current Certificate of Eligibility or your Post-9/11 GI Bill® Statement of Benefits.

How to Apply or Check your Benefits

• Apply for Education Benefits 
• Check Your Statement of Benefits

Assistance Estimating Your Benefits

• Use the GI Bill Comparison Tool to explore approved programs and assist in managing your benefit eligibility. 

"GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill. "

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Step 2: Request to Use your Benefits

What Documents Do I need? 

1. Copy of your Certificate of Eligibility (COE)
   • If the COE is unavailable you can submit the Statement of Benefits.
   • Chapter 31 (VR&E) students do not need to submit a COE.
2. DD214 or Notice of Basic Eligibility (NOBE)
   • A "Member 4 copy of your or the servicemember's DD214 may be needed for scholarship eligibility and/or in-state tuition benefits. This is not required for submitting your benefits to the VA. 

What Forms Do I need to Complete? 

• Millersville University's VA Enrollment Certification Form
  • Access the electronic form on:
    • Student Forms Portal
    • Paper copies are available upon request.
  • Required each semester you are enrolled and intend to use your VA Education Benefits 
• Uploading Your COE
  • If required, you will be asked to upload the Certificate of Eligibility while completing the VA Enrollment Certification Form.

VA Enrollment Certification Form Resources

 Instructions for Submitting a VA Enrollment Certification

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Step 3: Certify Your Enrollment MOnthly With the VA

What Is GI Bill® Monthly Enrollment Verification?

• GI Bill® Enrollment Verification is the required process of confirming your enrollment in your courses each month. This ensures that you continue to receive your education benefits without interruption. 

Who Needs to Complete Monthly Certification? 

• Students enrolled at least half-time and using one of the following benefits:
  • Chapter 33- Post 9/11 GI Bill®
  • Chapter 30- Montgomery GI Bill®- Active Duty
  • Chapter 1606- Montgomery GI Bill®- Selected Reserves

How do I Verify my Enrollment?

• Chapter 33- Post 9/11 GI Bill®: 
  • Chapter 33 Enrollment Verification Guide
  • By Text- If you opted in for text alerts when you registered, you will receive a text each month to verify your enrollment
  • By Email- If you did not choose text alerts, check your email. You will receive an email to the email address you used when setting up your benefits. 
  • By Phone- Call 1-888-442-4551 (Monday-Friday 8:00 AM - 7:00 PM Eastern Time).
  • Online- Visit Ask VA or go to Verify Your School Enrollment.  

• Chapter 30 and Chapter 1606- Montgomery GI Bill®:
  • By Phone- Call 1-877-823-2378.
  • Online- Go to Verify Your School Enrollment 

What if I do not Verify my Enrollment? 

• Chapter 33- Post 9/11 GI Bill®: 
  
  • If you do not verify your enrollment for 2 consecutive months, your monthly housing allowance and/or benefit payments will be paused. 

• Chapter 30 and Chapter 1606- Montgomery GI Bill®
  • Your monthly benefit payments will not be sent until you verify your enrollment. 

More Information

• For more details, check out the GI Bill Enrollment Verification FAQs. 

 

Can I combine my benefits with financial aid or other benefits such as FTA, EAP, Scholarships, Grants, etc.?

• Yes, in most cases this is possible (Chapter 31- VR&E has some exceptions).
• If your VA benefit pays the tuition and fees directly to the university, and the other benefit(s) are specifically allocated for tuition and/or mandatory fees, the VA will only cover what remains after other aid is applied.
• If the aid does not specify what it covers, then the other aid can be used for housing, food, other educational expenses, etc. and will not impact the VA benefit.

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 What happens if my benefits are used up in the middle of a semester?

• The VA typically pays through the end of a semester, as long as you are the last payer for those benefits, but situations may vary.
• If you have transferred benefits which have not all been utilized by all dependents and spouses or you do not qualify to be paid through the end of the semester, the VA will prorate your benefits from the start of the semester until your benefit exhaustion date.

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 What if my enrollment changes after it has been submitted to the VA?

• Contact the School Certifying Official immediately if your enrollment changes (add, drop, withdraw, etc.). They will need to report this change to the VA based on the date your change was processed by the university.
• Withdrawing or dropping a course may change the tuition and fees amount you are eligible for. The VA will request any tuition and fees payments to be returned by Millersville and in turn, this amount will be deducted from your payment toward your bill. You will be your responsibility ensure your bill is covered with Millersville.
  • Any stipends and/or housing allowances that must be repaid will be collected by the VA directly from you if necessary.

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 What if an extenuating circumstance caused me to need to withdraw? 

• The VA has a process known as mitigating circumstances.
• You can provide supporting documentation to the School Certifying Official when you report your change in enrollment, or you can report it separately to the VA once they process your change and reach out.
• If approved, the VA may not request back any stipends or housing allowance, but they will still request the return of tuition and fees from Millersville back to your withdraw date.
  • This may still leave you with an outstanding balance with Millersville University that you will need to resolve.

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 For my Chapter 33 benefit, what are the requirements for my Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA)?

• You must be enrolled greater than halftime (greater than 6 credits for undergraduate and greater than 3 credits for graduate) to receive your MHA.
• The MHA is based on the monthly military Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) rates for an E-5 with dependents per the location of the school.
• If you are enrolled 100% online, you will receive half the national average for MHA each month.
• MHA is prorated based on your enrollment status (Fulltime, ¾ time, etc.)

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 How can I transfer my benefits to my dependent/spouse? 

• Review the Transferred Education Benefits for Family Members webpage for instructions and eligibility requirements.

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 What if I want to take courses at another university?

• You can take courses at another university while enrolled at Millersville, either concurrently or as supplementary credits.
• The VA will pay for the credits if those credits will transfer toward your Millersville Degree.
  • You must notify Millersville’s School Certifying Official of your intention to take courses elsewhere.
  • You must complete an Authorization to Transfer Credits form with the Registrar’s Office to ensure your credits will transfer.
  • The School Certifying Official will contact the other university’s Certifying Official to request your course information be submitted to the VA.
    • You might need to fill out additional forms at the request of the other university based on their VA Enrollment policy.