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Certify Your GI Bill Eligibility

Lessons Learned: GI Bill Certificate of Eligibility

In this series of articles I have covered many of the lessons I learned the hard way – through personal experience. The tips and tricks I have learned will help you navigate the process and “red tape” of military and veteran education benefits.

For this article I am going dive a bit deeper into an issue I addressed in my last article about the glitches that I experienced using my GI Bill.  Specifically, Glitch #1 – The GI Bill Certification Process. In that article I wrote about the impact of the VA certification process. As I pointed out, the process took nearly 45 days, and added unnecessary stress to an already stressful situation.

What I failed to cover in the previous article was that I had not learned my own lesson the first time.

Let Me Explain

A few years after graduating, I decided to enroll in a post-grad marketing certification program at my local college. My plan was to use the remaining 8 months of my GI Bill benefit to pay for it.

As before, I submitted the GI Bill Certification request upon enrollment; however, the same delay occurred, this time in the form of an erroneous denial of benefits letter. Apparently, the claims processor had denied my claim because he or she was not aware of a special rule that provides an extra 12 months of benefits to those who are eligible for both the Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.

Unfortunately, I had to drop my classes until this was settled, mainly because I didn’t want to incur any additional costs.

The Good News

The good news is that eventually the VA figured out the error and paid the school.

The Bad News

The bad news is I had already dropped the classes, and because the VA paid the school, I now owed the VA for the tuition for the dropped courses. Thankfully, I was eventually able to convince the school to refund the VA, and I begged (okay, appealed to) the VA to have the charges for the dropped classes removed.

By the time I had everything sorted out, I had only six months left until my GI Bill benefits were set to expire. I was unable to take the post-grad program. In reality, I cannot complain, I had used the GI Bill to cover the cost of both my BS in Communications and my MBA, so I came out way ahead.

NOTE: Thankfully, most of you reading this are now eligible for the “Forever GI Bill,” which will never expire.

Process GI Bill Certification BEFORE You Enroll

So, what is the lesson learned? Learn from my mistake – Process the GI Bill Certification application before you enroll!

Applying is simple – but it still takes up to 30 days. Click here to learn how to submit the VA Form 22-1990 (a.k.a. Application for VA Education Benefits)

How to Apply for GI Bill Benefits

Certifying GI Bill benefits begins with the student’s application for VA education benefits, which determines eligibility and the amount of benefits available. The student must then work directly with a School Certifying Official (SCO) at their chosen institution to verify enrollment each term, which is the final step that triggers VA payments.

• The student, not the school, must initiate the basic process of applying for GI Bill benefits.
• The first and most important step is for the service member, veteran, or eligible dependent to apply for education benefits directly with the Department of Veterans Affairs. This is most often completed online at VA.gov.
• The VA reviews the applicant’s service records to determine which GI Bill program they qualify for.
• Once the VA approves the application, it issues a Certificate of Eligibility (COE) to the student.
• This official document informs the student of the exact benefit they have earned, their percentage of entitlement, and the total number of months of benefit.

After a student receives their COE and registers for classes, they must contact their school’s School Certifying Official (SCO). The SCO is a school employee, not a VA employee, who acts as the official liaison. The student provides their COE and class schedule to the SCO.

The SCO verifies that the student’s courses are part of an approved degree program, confirms the credit hours, and submits the official enrollment certification to the VA. This submission authorizes the VA to release payments for tuition, fees, and housing.

For most students using the Post-9/11 GI Bill, the VA requires monthly enrollment verification. Students must confirm their enrollment every month, typically via text or email, to continue receiving their Monthly Housing Allowance. The VA states it will pause payments if a student fails to verify.

Students must repeat this certification process with their SCO every term and report any schedule changes immediately.

NEXT STEP: The Reality of College Credit for Military Service

 

LESSONS LEARNED SERIES:

Personal stories from our Education Benefits author, Terry Howell.

• Getting the Most Out of Your GI Bill
• Dealing With GI Bill Glitches
• The Reality of College Credit for Military Service

 

RELATED:

• Verify GI Bill Eligibility: A Checklist
• Get a SMART Start On Your Education
• GI Bill Eligibility Certificate (COE)
• Yellow Ribbon Program Explained
• 8 Tips for Using the GI Bill