• Degree Requirements
• Our Responsibility to You
• Your Responsibility to Us
• Monthly Checks
• Semester Course Enrollment
• I, F, N/C and U Grades & Mitigating Circumstances
• No Credit ("NC") grades
• "F" grades
• Mitigating Circumstances
• Repeated Courses
• Dropping a Course
• Withdrawing from School
• Academic Probation
• VA Work-Study
• Overpayments and Interest
• Prolonged Illness or Serious Injury
• Information and Assistance

It is your responsibility to ensure that you are meeting the requirements for your degree objective. VA benefits are authorized only for courses which apply as degree requirements, including electives, for one current degree objective you have reported to the VA. The VA will only pay for classes that are required in your degree objective program plan. Academic Advising is available to provide help with General Education and major advising.

Undecided majors: If you report your degree objective to the VA as "undecided" we may certify only those courses which meet specific breadth requirements for up to half of your graduating requirements.  Typically 32 credits

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We will provide all documents and information necessary for you to receive your VA educational benefits. We will process all requests or benefits in a timely and proficient manner. We can certify enrollment to the VA for a maximum of one semester at a time.

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Keep us informed! It is your responsibility to request certification for subsequent periods. You must request benefits by completing VA Office in-house forms for each term in which you want to receive benefits. Although it is not required, priority is given to students who request certification.  All students that receive VA educational benefits must provide documentation that reflects the requirement for all course work that will decrease the number of units needed to complete the degree.

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Generally, it takes the VA Office approximately ten to twelve weeks from the date we certify your enrollment to generate your first check; this period may be longer, depending on VA workload. If you have not received some word from the VA within six weeks from the date of certification, call our VA Office to confirm your certification. If you prefer, you may call the Department of Veterans Affairs education services yourself toll-free at 1-888-GI-BILL-1; be sure to have your file number handy.

The VA Department generally pays you on or after the first of each month following the month for which payment is due. This system is called "post-payment." Occasionally, educational benefits checks do run a few days later than usual; when this happens you may call the Department of Veterans Affairs at 1-888-GI-BILL-1 to see when the check was, or will be mailed.

All chapters, with the exception of CH. 35, must verify attendance on a monthly basis. You may call: 1-877-823-2378 and follow the instructions provided OR you may go to the internet to: http:///www.gibill.va.gov/ and follow the link to the WAVE Program then follow instructions provided.

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We use Ivy Tech Community College's internal system to monitor the coursework of all students whom we certify for VA educational benefits. It is helpful to us-and beneficial to you-if you complete the Verification of Enrollment Form and turn it in to the VA Office after you register for classes, so we can certify that benefits are payable for each of your classes.. This ensures that your benefits will continue to arrive in a timely manner. Remember that you may receive benefits only for courses which apply toward your degree as breadth requirements, major requirements or necessary electives for one current degree objective  you have reported to the VA Office.

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If you make a grade of "I" in a class, you have 30 calendar days immediately following the end of the term during which it was assigned to make it up. When the work has been completed and evaluated, a final grade will be assigned by an instructor.

The VA has its own policy on incomplete grades whereby the student is allowed one year to replace the "I" with a grade; however, it must be remembered that this is secondary to the College regulation relating to incompletes. The VA Office is required to report "I" grades to the Department of Veteran Affairs when a grade of "I" is assigned. If the "I" grade has not been replaced after 30 days, the VA may retroactively terminate the benefits you received for that course, unless you submit evidence of acceptable mitigating circumstances.

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As neither units nor grade points are assigned for an "W" grade, the VA must be notified if you receive a "W", including "incomplete" grades that revert to "W". Unless you completed 12 additional units of required coursework that semester or can demonstrate acceptable mitigating circumstances, you will need to repay the benefits you received for that class.

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Your VA benefits will not be affected if you receive an "F" grade, unless you received the "F" due to non-attendance or are placed on academic probation. You must notify the VA Office if you stop attending a class, even if you do not officially withdraw.

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"Mitigating circumstances" is a term used quite often in relation to VA educational benefits. The VA considers mitigating circumstances to be those situations that are beyond your control, are serious enough to warrant changing your class schedule, and were unforeseen at the beginning of the semester. Mitigating circumstances can be provided on VA Form 21-4138 Statement in Support of Claim Form. If you use personal correspondence then be sure to include your full name (printed), Social Security Number, VA File Number, the Date, a Daytime telephone number with the area code, and your signature. If you have any supporting evidence includes a copy with your letter. (Always keep a copy of what you submit!)

To obtain VA Form 21-4138 see: http://www.vba.va.gov/pubs/forms/vba-21-4138.pdf

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BEFORE you repeat any class for which the College has granted you credit, you should check with the VA Office to see how this will affect your benefits. The VA Office will not consider toward full-time status those units which repeat courses in which a grade of "D" or better has been received, unless the College specifically requires a higher grade in that particular course according to standards published in the General Catalog. VA regulations will allow you to receive benefits for repeating a course in which you previously received a grade of "F" or "W", if the course applies to your degree requirements. The Department of Veteran Affairs will not pay to repeat any courses that were completed successfully.

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Notify the VA Office whenever you are thinking about making a change in your course-load, and we will review the repercussions with you. If you drop a class which reduces your percentage of full-time, our office is obligated to notify the Department of Veterans Affairs within 30 days of the date of the drop; if you report the change to us when you make it, you can save money in VA administrative charges and reduce the chances that future benefit payments will be delayed.

If there are mitigating circumstances surrounding the reduction, and the VA Office accepts them, your benefits could continue at the prior rate through the date you make the reduction. If there are no mitigating circumstances, or if the VA Office does not approve them, your benefit rate will be reduced retroactively to the first day of the semester. Mitigating circumstances will be considered to exist without explanation by the student in the first instance of withdrawal from a course or courses totaling not more than four quarter units.

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If you withdraw during the semester, the VA Office will cancel your benefits retroactively to the end of the preceding semester. An exception to this rule can be made if you have acceptable mitigating circumstances; in this case, your benefits will be terminated as of the last day of attendance.

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Undergraduate students are placed on academic probation when their semester or cumulative grade-point average, computed on the total of all courses taken at Ivy Tech, is less than 2.0 ("C" average). The VA coordinator is required to notify the Department of Veterans Affairs if a student is on probation or subject to dismissal for two consecutive semesters. Students who are allowed by the College to continue their attendance, and who remain in the same program, may be re-certified for benefits immediately. Those who change programs may file a request for resumption of benefits with the  VA office.

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Students who are receiving VA education benefits are eligible to participate in the Department of Veterans Affairs work-study program. Depending on availability of positions, work-study may be available if you are receiving VA education benefits, and are attending school at least three-quarter time (9 semester hours) or greater. Students may work at Department of Veteran Affairs approved sites up to 425 hours during a semester. Payment is at the federal or state minimum wage, whichever is greater. Work study payments are a benefit and therefore are not taxable. To apply:

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The Department of Veteran Affairs charges interest and a monthly administrative fee on overpayments of educational benefits; obviously, it is in your interest to contact our office before you make changes in your student status. The VA coordinator must report changes to the Department of Veteran Affairs within 30 days of the effective date of the change. If you have mitigating circumstances and have been in contact with our office, we can send your completed Statement in Support of Claim to the Department of Veteran Affairs with our notification of the change in your status, and an overpayment may be avoided.

As a result of the October 1998 Congressional reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, some changes in the law may affect how your veterans' benefits are coordinated with any federal financial aid you are receiving. The Higher Education Act is the law on which administration of the federal financial aid programs is based.

In general, the law requires that educational benefits offered by the Department of Veteran Affairs must be treated as a resource when the Financial Aid Office makes awards from the campus-based federal aid programs (Federal Perkins Loan, Federal Supplemental Educational Opportunity grant and Federal Work Study). These benefits are not used in calculation of your expected family contribution. However, information regarding veterans benefits must be collected by the College for use in packaging financial aid awards from Perkins Loan, SEOG and Federal Work Study programs.

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Severe illness or death in your immediate family

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