VA Education Benefits

Veteran’s Day is November 11th and as a veteran and current Director of the Veterans Resource Center at Eastern Washington University, I work with many parents who served or are currently serving in the military.

EWU has close to 500 students who are veterans, service members or military connected family members currently using some form of VA Education Benefit. These benefits can help pay for tuition, books, and housing. Below is a short summary of these benefits. If you or a member of your family is somehow connected to the military–; a veteran or a service member either active duty or National Guard/Reserves–, your student may be eligible for some of these benefits.

Dependents’ Educational Assistance (DEA) program. If you’re a Veteran who is VA rated 100% disabled, your student may be able to get help paying for school through the DEA program—also called Chapter 35. This benefit pays the student a monthly stipend. If both you and the student are both Washington state residents, they may also be eligible for a state tuition waiver. 

Transfer your Post-9/11 VA benefits. If you’re still on active duty you may be eligible to transfer your VA Benefits to your student. The student can start to use these benefits only after you’ve finished at least 10 years of service. They can use these benefits while you’re on active duty or after you’ve separated from service. 

Washington State National Guard Benefits. If your student is considering joining the Army or Air Force National Guard, once they complete their military basic training there are several educational benefits they can apply for to help offset the cost of tuition. The National Guard Grant is a form of financial aid that can cover most tuition costs.  Military Tuition Assistance can lessen your student’s financial concerns considerably since it can pay up to 100% of tuition expenses.  Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR) offers up to 36 months of education and training benefits. If your student is a member of the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps or Coast Guard Reserve, Army National Guard, or Air National Guard, they may be eligible for this benefit.

Please reach out to the EWU Veterans Resource Center at any time if you or your student have any questions about these VA Education benefits. 

Dave Millet, Director of Veterans Resource Center

dmillet@ewu.edu or veterans@ewu.edu