Fight for Your Rights: Military Scholarships for Veterans

There is a slang word that is used in the military and the government - "milspeak" - that means the kind of confusing, abbreviated and acronym-filled speech typical of the Pentagon's military bureaucrats. Unfortunately, milspeak also made its way into the legislation that was passed to provide military scholarships for veterans. It is a hard dialect to translate sometimes if you don't have help.

The good news is that people have figured most of it out, and can help veterans get the military scholarships that the law established. Not only the federal government, but states and private colleges too, make funds available in a variety of ways to veterans hoping to start, continue or finish their college educations. There is no better time than the present to be a veteran, active duty soldier or reservist who wants a college education. At many colleges, just having veteran status will get a student a 25 percent discount on tuition, as well as free books, software and services, in many cases.

As far as government-funded military scholarships for veterans, the main federal program is known as the Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB), or Chapter 1606, which contrary to popular belief is not just for active duty personnel. Reservists can also take advantage of Chapter 1606 benefits under the MGIB-SR (Selected Reserve) section, as long as certain requirements concerning length of service, training, status in the reserves, etc.

This much is clear, that both active duty and reserve personnel have scholarship and financial aid benefits under Chapter 1606. But increasing amounts of milspeak and government bureaucratic mumbo-jumbo crops up as one begins to look more closely at eligibility, the effect of service academy attendance, Senior ROTC involvement and so forth. It is always a smart move to contact the Veterans Administration (VA) about any and all questions relating to military scholarships for veterans.

Generally speaking, one may be eligible for several educational benefits from the military at the same time, but may only receive one benefit at a time. The same period of service cannot be used to establish eligibility for both Selected reserve and active duty versions of the MGIB. And further complicating an already complex picture was the passage of Chapter 1607 into law in October of 2004, specifically affecting reservists who were activated after September 11, 2001.

For one thing, participants in Chapter 1607 are not required to pay into the system. But because the benefit is so new, the VA and Department of Defense (DoD) have not yet established all the procedures, and facts about the new programs are still hazy. The VA posts informational updates about this new benefit program at a new Web site, GIBill.va.gov.

These forms of scholarship and aid are paid to veterans directly, not to the colleges. If you are a veteran who has decided to go to college, just take the paperwork you were given when you left the service (called a DD-214) and get it certified by the VA. Then simply bring it to the college and turn it in to the admissions office, financial aid specialist, registrar or veterans benefits clerk.

The college will handle the submission of the paperwork, and you should begin receiving payments within just a few months. This process is required just one time for every school you go to, and the funds will continue as long as you are a student, for up to 36 months. Remember, too, that there is no requirement as to how you use the money. Since you get it directly, you can do with it what you decide is best, as long as you remain an enrolled student.

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