Military Aid for Online Education

Financial aid for veterans and service members

SUNY & SLN Welcome online
Military students

The State University of New York welcomes students with military experience, veterans and their family members. In fact, this year SLN was awarded 'Military Friendly' status for 2010 by G.I. Jobs Magazine.

In addition, many SLN Campuses are SOC (Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges) members, offering special consideration for Military students. What is an SOC campus? Read more about the SOC program.

Whether you are taking one online course, or looking to participate in an online degree program, a variety of benefits encourage college enrollment for veterans and provide financial assistance to make it easier to pursue and fund higher education. To explore the education benefits you qualify for and complete an application, visit Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits.

As a servicemember, veteran or reservist, you have many benefit/aid options. You may be eligible for any or all of the following:

• Military Tuition Assistance (TA) for Air Force, Army, Navy, Marines, Coast Guard, National Guard and Reserves.
• The GI Bill
• Scholarships, awards and State & Federal Tuition Assistance, Fee Reductions, or Waivers
• Federal Loans and Grants — Federal Student Aid

TUITION ASSISTANCE FOR ACTIVE servicemembers

Each service branch of the Armed Forces — Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, and Coast Guard — offers its Active Duty personnel several programs to support their education goals, including up to 100% Tuition Assistance for college courses taken during off-duty hours. There is also a military Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) for reservists.

The GI Bill

The content below provides detailed information on the new GI Bill for the Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America.

Post 9/11 Veterans Education Assistance Act (S.22/H.R. 2702)

This proposed benefit will cover the full cost of education at any public school in the country and many private schools. To qualify for the benefits, a veteran has to have served at least 90 days of active duty service post-9/11 and have remaining entitlement. Only post 9/11 active duty service counts toward this benefit. Any remaining Chapter 30 or 1607 entitlement can be converted into this new education benefit. There is no requirement to buy-in to qualify and the benefits last for 15 years after separation.

This benefit discards the outdated benefits system and replaces it with a WWII-style GI Bill that provides upfront tuition payments directly to the school, provides a book/supply stipend of $1,000/yr and a monthly living stipend.

The tuition payments can be used at any public or private school, but are capped at the cost of the most expensive public school in the state — GI Bill Calculator. However, more expensive private schools offering a veterans-only scholarship will see that scholarship matched dollar for dollar up to the full cost of tuition.

The monthly living stipend will be based on the Department of Defense Basic Housing Allowance (BAH) for that region. The stipend will be pegged to the E-5 with a dependent rate for the zip code of the school.

Reservists

Reservists will continue to receive a percentage of the active duty rate based on the length of their active duty service. However, this new benefit will allow reservists to accumulate active duty service from multiple tours (more service = higher benefits). Lastly, every reservist called to active duty will now have 15 years to use their benefits, no longer just those that do 8 years of active duty or select reserve.

For more information on the new GI Bill, please see: http://www.newgibill.org/.

Federal Aid Programs for Military Personnel

The federal government offers several Financial Student Aid Programs. These programs offer you extremely low interest loans and grants (free money). Unlike the GI Bill, these programs are paid through the school; however, like the GI Bill, Federal Student Aid is designed to assist you in meeting the cost of tuition, books, fees, and living expenses while you go to school. That means that once the school has taken its share, the remaining loan or grant balance goes to you.

For more information on Federal support for education for military personnel, please visit: http://www.gibill.va.gov/

Scholarships, Awards and Tuition Assistance for Veterans (NY State):

The New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC) guarantees federal student and parent loans, offers loan management services, and provides guidance for college planning. In New York State, HESC also administers the Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) and other state specific grants and scholarships, including NY State Tuition Assistance Awards. HESC provides financial information for veterans at their website, Military Corner. For any questions, contact HESC at 1-888-697-4372 or e-mail at militarycorner@hesc.com.

The NY State Higher Education Services Corporation website provides additional information on:

• Post 9/11 GI Bill (Ch 33)
• Montgomery GI Bill (Ch 30)
• Veterans Tuition Award (full & part-time study)
• Vocational Rehabilitation

For New York Residents, please visit The New York State Higher Education Services website: http://www.suny.edu/student/military.cfm. For out-of-state students, please contact the Higher Education Services Corporation. If you are an out-of-state military student, please contact the higher education services department for your state to find out what opportunities for veterans are available for veterans taking out-of-state courses. You can find your state higher education office here: Higher Education Offices listings by State.

Resources:

GoArmyEd is the virtual gateway for soldiers on active duty to request Tuition Assistance (TA) online, anytime for classroom, distance learning, and eArmyU online college courses.

SOCAD is the Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC) degree program for the Army. It consists of colleges that offer associate and bachelor's degree programs, on or accessible to, Army installations worldwide.

Military.com can walk you through one of your biggest decisions. From their college search engine, to their tips and advice columns, you can decide the best path to follow.

Veterans Tuition Awards (VTA) are awards for full-time study and part-time study for eligible veterans matriculated at an undergraduate or graduate degree-granting institution or in an approved vocational training program in New York State.

The Montgomery GI Bill - Active Duty, called "MGIB" for short, provides up to 36 months of education benefits to eligible veterans.

The National Association of Veterans Upward Bound Project Personnel (NAVUBPP) is the professional association for Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) staff personnel. Veterans Upward Bound projects are funded by the U. S. Department of Education and serve eligible veterans across the nation.

New York State Higher Education Services Corporation (HESC)
99 Washington Avenue
Albany, NY 12255
Telephone: 1-888-697-4372

Department of Veterans Affairs Eastern Regional Office
PO Box 4616
Buffalo, NY 14240-4616
Telephone: 1-888-442-4551

www.gibill.va.gov

United States Department of Veterans Affairs
Education (GI Bill): 1-888-442-4551
VA Benefits: 1-800-827-1000

More Information

For more information on military aid for SUNY study, please visit: http://studentaid.ed.gov

For more information on SUNY Financial aid programs and state and federal programs for financial aid at SUNY, please contact the Financial Aid Office at the campus offering your course or program online.

The SUNY Learning Network program is administered by the Office of the Provost.

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