Veteran & Military Tuition Benefits

• Visit va.gov 
• Scroll down to “How do I apply”
• Pull down the “Find your education benefits form”
• Answer the questions and then “apply now”
• You have the option to apply without signing in, or you can create an account to log back in and track – if you have an ID.me account. It is highly recommended you sign in with this account as you may receive a quicker approval.
• Answer all the questions – select which VA benefit for which you qualify.
• When you choose Post 9/11 GI Bill ^®, you are provided with an election date to relinquish any other benefits for which you may qualify.

Please be aware that you may only use one type of VA Educational Benefit at a time. For instance, if a veteran has eligibility under both the Ch. 30 and Ch. 1606 programs, the veteran would have to choose which program they want to use.

Students who are not sure which benefit they may be eligible for, please contact your VMBS.

Service Members 

If you have at least 90 days active-duty time after 09/11/2001 (Not Counting Training) you may be eligible for CH 33.

Dependents

The service member would have had to transfer a portion of their GI Bill^® benefits (transfer of benefits) to you while they were active duty.

Enrollment and Verification

• Complete the Veteran Enrollment Certification form (VREC)
  • Upon receipt of completed VREC, your account is coded to keep you from being dropped for non-payment or needing to set up a payment plan. If you are NOT 100% for Post 9/11 you are responsible for the remaining balance
• If you are enrolled in any courses that have certification or licensing tests you must pay those fees. The VA has deemed them ineligible, but you may request reimbursement for a portion of the charges. Visit the Veterans' Administration website for more information. 
• You are required to verify your attendance at the end of every month with the VA before your monthly housing allowance (MHA) is sent to you. Students who receive MHA/kicker payments will have their payments withheld if they fail to verify or report that they are no longer enrolled in their courses or training.
• There are two ways to verify your attendance:
  • Via Text Message:
    • Opt in: Students with a U.S. mobile phone number can use text messages as a simple, quick option for verifying monthly enrollment. As your enrollment approaches, you will receive the following opt-in text: “Post-9/11 GI Bill ® housing and kicker payments now require monthly enrollment verification. Would you like to submit yours via text? Please reply YES or NO.” Reply “YES” to opt in. The text message link will expire 14 days after receipt, so please respond within that time frame.
    • Verify: After opting in, you can verify your enrollment every month simply by responding to the following text message from VA: “Did you remain enrolled in your courses in MONTH YEAR as certified? Please reply YES or NO. If you have dropped all your courses, you must reply "NO.” Reply “YES” to verify enrollment for the previous month.  If you don’t reply within 6 days, the conversation will expire and you will need to call the Education Call Center (ECC) at 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551) domestically or 001-918-781-5678 internationally to verify your enrollment.
    • NOTE:  When responding to opt-in or verification texts, it may take up to a day to receive a confirmation text in response.  Be assured that your response has been received.
  • Via Email:
    • If you opt out of text messages, can’t verify by text, or do not have a U.S. mobile phone number, you will be automatically enrolled in email verification at the email address on file with VA.
    • After being opted into email verification, you will receive an email with the subject line, “Confirmation: You’ve been enrolled into VA’s email verification!”
    • On the last day of each month, you will receive an email with the subject line, “Action Required: Verify Your Monthly Enrollment”. Select “Yes, my enrollment is the same” to verify your enrollment. After selecting your response, you will be taken to a confirmation page thanking you for verifying your monthly enrollment.
    • If you don’t select a response within 14 days, the links in your email will expire and you will need to call the ECC to verify your enrollment.
    • If your enrollment status has changed, select “No, my enrollment has changed.” Please contact your SCO to ensure your enrollment record with VA has been adjusted.

  • If you are unable to verify via text or email, you will need to contact the ECC at 1-888-GIBILL-1 (1-888-442-4551) and ask a representative to verify your enrollment. NOTE: ECC wait times may be high due to the number of students verifying enrollment each month.

  • If you’re not sure if VA has your phone number and/or email on file, you can also contact the ECC to update your contact information and ensure you can verify via text or email.

    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.

Service Members 

To qualify, you would have contributed $100 per month for the first 12 months of your contract or made a $1,200 bulk payment to your GI Bill^®.

How It Works

• You are required to verify your attendance with the VA at the end of every month before your monthly stipend is sent to you.

  • Visit the VA website

  • Your File Number is your Social Security Number (SSN)

  • Use the last six digits of your SSN as your password if you are logging in for the first time
• The monthly stipend the VA sends you is intended to help pay your tuition and may not cover your entire tuition amount. If your stipend does not cover all your tuition, you will need to have financial aid or set up a payment plan prior to the start of your classes. Visit the financial aid section of this webpage below to learn how to apply for financial aid through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
• If you are enrolled in any courses that have certification, or licensing, visit the VA website to request reimbursement for a portion of the charges.

This benefit is for Service members. Apply for Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) benefits. You will be contacted by the Voc Rehab office for review.

Once we receive a purchase order (P.O.) from your VR&E counselor, we will code your account so you will receive any financial aid you are entitled to upon disbursement of aid.

This VA benefit is for Guard and Reserve members with NO active-duty time.

How It Works

• You are required to verify your attendance with the VA at the end of every month before your monthly stipend is sent to you.

  • Visit the VA website

  • Your File Number is your Social Security Number (SSN)

  • Use the last six digits of your SSN as your password if you are logging in for the first time
• The monthly stipend the VA sends you is intended to help pay your tuition and may not cover your entire tuition amount. If your stipend does not cover all your tuition, you will need to have financial aid or set up a payment plan prior to the start of your classes. Visit the financial aid section of this webpage below to learn how to apply for financial aid through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
• If you are enrolled in any courses that have certification, or licensing, visit the VA website to request reimbursement for a portion of the charges.

This VA benefit is for the dependents of a Veteran that has a 100% permanent and total service related disability.

How it Works

• The monthly stipend the VA sends you is intended to help pay your tuition and may not cover your entire tuition amount. If your stipend does not cover all your tuition, you will need to have financial aid or set up a payment plan prior to the start of your classes. Visit the financial aid section of this webpage below to learn how to apply for financial aid through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).
• If you are enrolled in any courses that have certification, or licensing, visit the VA website to request reimbursement for a portion of the charges.
• If you are a child of a disabled Veteran who is also an Indiana resident, you may also qualify for Child of a Disabled Veteran state tuition waiver. Visit the Indiana Commission for Higher Education to learn more.

For dependents of a Veteran who died in the line of duty on or after September 11, 2001, while serving in the Armed Forces, or was a member of the Selected Reserve who died from a service-connected disability.

You can receive federal financial aid and VA benefits simultaneously. Apply for Financial Aid by filling out your Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

State Veteran Education Benefits and National Guard Supplemental Grant, Tuition and Fees

Important things to consider if you withdraw from a class after the 100% refund period

Financial Aid

• Your SAP (Satisfactory Academic Progress) status is impacted, affecting future financial aid eligibility
• You may owe Federal Aid back to the college, due to the college having to pay back Title IV funds

VA benefits CH33

• You will owe the college tuition, as the VA debts the college for unused tuition based off your last date of attendance

• You may have a housing debt based off your last date of attendance

All other VA chapters

• You may incur a debt with the VA based off your last date of attendance

Military Tuition Assistance

• You may owe the school for tuition returned to the military for the portion of the course(s) you are no longer enrolled
• Please see your local Education Office for possible impact to your future TA benefits

Discover how your military training transfers to Ivy Tech! View the Ivy Tech Military Crosswalk.

Ivy Tech Community College offers Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) for students with select qualifications and expertise. Learn more about earning credit for prior learning.

If you stopped attending your class(es) and received a Last Date of Attendance (LDA), which is ascertained from your professor, or IvyLearn activity, that date is reported to the VA. When the LDA is reported to the VA, we are also reporting what the tuition and fees would have been without that course. As a result of this change, the VA charges the college for tuition not used. Since the class was not dropped during the 100% refund period, the college is entitled to the tuition, which means you now owe the college.

The VA can also create a debt on you for housing allowance that you collected while not attending your course(s). If you fail to call the VA and set up a payment plan. They will retain any future VA benefits from you until your debt is satisfied. You do have options though, you can call the VA Debt Management center (phone number is on the debt letter) and set up a payment plan or appeal the debt. If you had mitigating circumstances that kept you from attending the course(s), or from officially withdrawing, you can appeal the VA debt decision. The paperwork is included in the debt notification letter. You must provide documentation of the mitigating circumstance and complete the required paperwork. Be aware, even with an appeal you can still be held responsible for the debt unless you notify VA Debt Management that you are appealing the decision. If the VA approves the appeal, this is for the housing allowance only, you are still responsible for paying the college any balance owed.

If you have questions or need additional assistance, see your VMBS!

For questions regarding how the withdraw may impact your financial aid, be sure to follow up with your campus financial aid office. Even if you did not use any Title IV funds, your future financial aid eligibility is impacted.

The VA requires your official military and prior college (if applicable) transcripts to be on file with the school you are currently attending.

To request your official military transcripts, please click on the appropriate link below and have your official transcript sent to Ivy Tech Community College.

ARMY, COAST GUARD, MARINE CORPS, and NAVY

AIR FORCE