Tuition Assistance

Tuition Assistance (TA) also known as Federal Tuition Assistance (FTA) is a fund usable by active duty, guard, and reserve components to assist in paying for the cost of their voluntary, off-duty education programs. It provides $250 per credit hour, not to exceed $3750-4500 in a year running from 10/1 – 9/30. Each service branch has access to TA and specific portals that students and administrators use to manage the funds. In order to be eligible to receive TA, each institution must sign a Department of Defense Memorandum of Understanding (DoD MOU).

There are many moving parts to each fund and portal. They all require that programs and catalogs be uploaded, grades, graduations, and student progress be reported, as well as billing and invoicing. Resources below give insight into the process from both the student and administrator point of view.

An article from Military One Source provides a general, helpful, high-level overview of all the funds.

ArmyIgnitED Portal

Beginning Aug. 29 2022, an upgraded version of the ArmyIgnitED portal will go online to provide Soldiers, education counselors, and academic institutions a smoother and more reliable experience for processing Army Tuition Assistance Requests.

• ArmyIgnitED Upgrade Article

Sign up for Army School Support, a private collaborative engagement platform for ArmyIgnitED education institutions, to get questions answered in real time.

Navy and Marine Corps Portal

Both branches utilize the same Navy Education portal to apply and submit coursework for payment.

Both the Navy and the Marine Corps provide really detailed instructions for applicants and institutions.

Air Force Portal

This portal exists for Air Force members to access TA. It’s also a tool that university administrators use to report grades, graduations, and invoicing.

Additional training tools and seminars are available once your institution is signed up to access the site.

Coast Guard Portal

The Coast Guard provides one site that serves as both access to the portal, provides instructions for applicants, and a really defined FAQ Guide.

Best Practices in VA Certification

The work of the SCO (or VACO) can be difficult and challenging. Sometimes it’s just one part of a job description, sometimes it’s the entire job description. The number of students that need to be certified may feel like more than one professional can handle.

• SCO Best Practices PDF
  

The University of Michigan’s Veteran and Military Services Office offers a resource on the certification process with clear guidance for students. When the process is clear and streamlined for the student, it’s also easier on the SCO. Take a look and see what can be adapted at your institution.

This W.A.V.E.S conference presentation provides some good general material on successful organization and SCO best practices.

Trainings and Professional Development

It is necessary, and often required, for SCOs (also known as VACOs) to keep up with training offerings and to refresh professionally. VA, regional bodies, and others such as the National Association of Veterans Program Administrators (NAVPA), offer excellent opportunities.

Reporting Fees should be available within your institution to cover the cost of attending training and certification opportunities at least once a year. Regulated under Public Law 111-377, Reporting Fees — the $17 per student, per term, that institutions receive to process benefits — cannot be rolled into the general fund, and must be earmarked for training and other very specific, limited-scope items.

NAVPA & NASPA

NAVPA, a group of higher education administrators involved in advocacy, legislation, reform, and benefits processing training, has a wide variety of resources available. It also offers an annual national conference that is packed with helpful content and updates.

NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, is an excellent resource for student affairs professionals to gain and develop necessary skills. It has a Veterans Knowledge Community that includes a knowledge database, resources, and national training opportunities.

National Opportunities

The VA requires that all SCOs (or VACOs) complete training hours every year through its portal.

• Annual SCO Training

Regional Opportunities

Every institution is located in a state that is a part of a specific VA processing region. There are four regions: Northeast, Southeast, Continental, and Pacific. There are organizations that provide up-to-date training opportunities in collaboration with the SAAs and ELRs located regionally. These are affordable, low-cost opportunities that provide great information.

• Find your region by state
• The Association of Veterans Education Certifying Officials
• Western Association of Veterans Education Specialists

Look for other opportunities for training held in each state that are offered by ELRs and SAAs.

State Approving Agency Guidance and Process

The State Approving Agency (SAA) in each state is an entity that works to ensure that educational programs are legitimate, meet academic rigor, and follow statutory criteria for programs that want to enroll students using VA educational benefits, like the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

Essentially, they work between the schools and VA as an additional check on compliance. The two main ways that an SCO (or VACO) interacts with a SAA are during compliance survey visits and catalog reviews. As an SCO, it is best to know everything one can about the SAA and VA so you know where their authority ends and the school’s begins.

• National Association of State Approving Agencies (NASAA)
• SCO Training: Program Approval and State Approving Agencies