Paying for college can pose a major obstacle to many Americans. Degrees today cost a lot of money. Fortunately, veterans have access to some incredible education benefits that can make college far more affordable. As such, we’ll use this article to outline options for how to pay for college as a veteran.

Specifically, we’ll discuss the following:

• An Overview of College Costs
• How to Pay for College, Option 1: Post-9/11 GI Bill
• How to Pay for College, Option 2: Yellow Ribbon Program
• How to Pay for College, Option 3: VA Work-Study Program
• How to Pay for College, Option 4: School-Specific Scholarships
• How to Pay for College, Option 5: Deployment Savings
• How to Pay for College, Option 6: Work and Attend School Part-Time
• How to Pay for College, Option 7: Federal Loans and Grants
• Final Thoughts

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An Overview of College Costs

College is expensive. And, veterans face more education-related costs than simply tuition. As you consider paying for school, it’s important to understand all costs you’ll incur:

• Tuition & fees: These include the direct costs of education. Broadly speaking, tuition represents the costs that all students need to pay directly to the college. Think of tuition as the “sticker price.” Fees, on the other hand, only pertain to some students. Fees are best compared to “a la carte” charges, but unfortunately ones you often don’t have a choice about paying (e.g. orientation fees, lab fees, freshman fees, etc.). While tuition makes up the bulk of these costs, fees can add up to thousands of dollars per year.
• Books: This expense comes as an unwelcome surprise to many veterans. Required college textbooks can cost you over a thousand dollars per year (sometimes significantly more). And, for many classes, these textbooks include assignment-related problem sets, meaning you must purchase the specific edition for the course – not a more inexpensive used but older edition.
• Room & board: These are your living expenses, that is, paying for where you live and what you eat. If you want to live on campus, you’ll pay these directly to the college. With this route, you’ll pay the school and receive a dorm or student apartment and some sort of meal plan. Alternatively, you can live off campus, renting or buying your own place and doing your own grocery shopping. Either way, you need to account for these costs.
• Sacrificed earnings: Lastly, veterans should also consider the costs of not working while attending school. As people leave the military, most consider one of two options: 1) work, or 2) go to school. If you choose school, you inherently lose the earnings you would have made if you had gone to work. Over the long-term, the increased income potential of having a college degree should outweigh a couple years of missed wages, though.

Having outlined these costs, we’ll use the remainder of the article to explain ways veterans can pay for college.

How to Pay for College, Option 1: Post-9/11 GI Bill

The Post-9/11 GI Bill represents the absolute gold standard of college payment options for veterans. Administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs, this program offers eligible veterans the following benefits:

• 36 months of tuition and fees up to the in-state, public school maximum
• A tax-free, monthly housing allowance while enrolled in school
• An annual book stipend of up to $1,000

To qualify for these outstanding benefits, veterans must have served at least 90 days of active duty following September 10th, 2001. However, to receive 100% benefits, veterans must have served 36 months or more of active duty or, if discharged due to a service-connected disability, at least 30 continuous days.

How to Pay for College, Option 2: Yellow Ribbon Program

The GI Bill has a tuition ceiling capped at the in-state, public school maximum. But, many veterans decide to pursue more expensive, private school degrees. In these situations, the GI Bill alone would not cover tuition, meaning that veterans would need to pay the difference.

Fortunately, the Yellow Ribbon Program tackles this problem. The program serves as a payment collaboration between colleges and the VA. If your school has enrolled as a Yellow Ribbon participant, it will receive a certain number of eligible Yellow Ribbon slots per year. If you want to go to college and the Post-9/11 GI Bill doesn’t cover the full tuition, Yellow Ribbon serves a bridging function, with participating schools agreeing to pay a portion of the difference and the VA matching that contribution dollar-for-dollar.

For example, if a college agrees to pay $10,000 in Yellow Ribbon contributions, the VA will match that, meaning you receive a total of $20,000 in tuition above your GI Bill benefits. While this may not cover the entire difference, Yellow Ribbon payments can offset a significant amount of your out-of-pocket tuition expenses.

NOTE: Only veterans with 100% GI Bill benefits can use the Yellow Ribbon Program.

How to Pay for College, Option 3: VA Work-Study Program

The VA also offers veterans the ability to “earn while they learn.” While enrolled in college, the VA allows eligible veterans to participate in its Work-Study Program. This program won’t pay for college, per se, but it will provide you income to offset any degree-related or living expenses. To qualify, you must:

• Be enrolled at least three-quarter time in college, and
• Have found a VA-related job, either at your school or in a nearby VA facility, and
• Be able to finish this work-study contract while still qualifying for VA education benefits, and
• Be using approved VA education benefits to pay for your education

If you meet these criteria, the VA will pay you the federal or state minimum wage, whichever is higher. And, if working at a college, the school may pay you the difference between that minimum wage and what it would normally pay for the job.

In addition to providing veterans some extra cash, this system helps offset the sacrificed earnings cost to attending college.

How to Pay for College, Option 4: School-Specific Scholarships

This option requires more research and effort on the individual veteran’s part. Most colleges offer some form of scholarship, especially ones with larger endowments. And, some of these scholarships are tailored specifically to veterans. When you narrow down the list of colleges you’d like to attend, research the individual scholarships those schools offer.

But why would I need scholarships if the GI Bill already covers my tuition?

If GI Bill already covers your full tuition, it’s not uncommon for scholarships to pay you directly. In other words, if you apply for and receive a scholarship for $10,000 per year, that can be an extra $10,000 in your pocket every year if the GI Bill covers your tuition. However, veterans need to recognize that, in these situations, those scholarship funds would qualify as taxable income.

Bottom line, even if you don’t need to apply for these scholarships, the benefits can certainly justify the efforts.

How to Pay for College, Option 5: Deployment Savings

These next three college payment options are tailored to veterans who plan on paying for college themselves rather than using benefits. For instance, some veterans choose to transfer their GI Bill benefits to a spouse or child. If you’re considering this path but still want to pursue a degree yourself, you still have some other options to pay for college.

When deployed, especially in a tax-free combat zone, you can save a lot of money. Some service members certainly get home and spend this money on a new car or massive weekend in Las Vegas. But, if you plan ahead, you can also set this money aside to pay for college. This requires tremendous foresight and discipline, but it is an option as a veteran.

How to Pay for College, Option 6: Work and Attend School Part-Time

College doesn’t need to be all-or-nothing. In other words, you can attend school part-time. This approach has been made even easier with online degree programs. And, for veterans eager to begin civilian careers, this has the added benefit of letting you begin work immediately following service.

Many civilian jobs do not require a degree to immediately begin working. But, getting a degree may provide promotion opportunities or increased pay within these careers. For veterans in these situations, it may make sense to work full-time and attend school part-time. With this model, you can use your income to help pay for college classes.

This is not an easy approach, especially if you have a family. Working all day then coming home to do your school work requires a ton of time, effort, and discipline. But, it can also provide you a way to pay for college without taking on any debt.

How to Pay for College, Option 7: Federal Loans and Grants

Federal – or any – loans represent the least desirable option to pay for college. As a veteran, you shouldn’t need to go into debt paying for school – too many better alternatives exist. Despite this reality, federal loans remain an option to pay for college. And, if you’re considering loans, federal ones typically offer far better terms than private ones.

The federal government also offers grants for college, which you don’t need to repay. Qualifying for these will depend on your unique financial and personal situation.

If you’d like to apply for federal loans or grants, you’ll need to complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA).

Final Thoughts

The Post-9/11 GI Bill provides veterans the best option for paying for college. Between the tuition, housing, and book benefits, you simply can’t find a better program. And, when you combine these benefits with the Yellow Ribbon Program, you expand your options even further. But, for veterans looking for alternatives, other options to pay for college exist, as well.

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Maurice “Chipp” Naylon spent nine years as an infantry officer in the Marine Corps. He is currently a licensed CPA specializing in real estate development and accounting.

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Over the past decade, the popularity of online education has increased dramatically. But, online degrees have also faced some significant – and, at times, justified – criticism. For veterans, this begs the question: should I pursue an online education? To answer this question, veterans need to consider the advantages and disadvantages of this degree path. As such, we’ll use this article to explain the pros and cons of an online education.

Specifically, we’ll discuss the following:

• An Overview of Online Education
• Pros of an Online Education
• Cons of an Online Education
• Questions to Ask Universities
• Final Thoughts

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An Overview of Online Education

Prior to discussing the pros and cons, veterans should understand the basics of online education. This overview should help inform your decision about whether or not to consider this degree path.

Types of Online Education

Broadly speaking, two types of online education exist: full and hybrid. A fully online program, as the name suggests, means you do all of your work on the computer. Your assignments, student and professor interactions, and examinations are all completed on the computer.

Alternatively, some online programs offer a level of in-person instruction, as well. These hybrid programs may be primarily completed online, but students also complete some in-person seminars. This is a common set-up for many online MBA programs, where students must attend one or two seminars every semester in addition to their online coursework.

Dependence on Personal Initiative

At some level, all education depends on personal initiative. But, this reality becomes particularly relevant with online schooling. With in-person degrees, you have requirements to attend lectures at certain times, meet with professors during office hours, and organize meetings with fellow students for group products. If you miss any of these events, you’ll need to deal with the face-to-face shame of failing to meet a requirement.

With online education, you’ll have some level of time-sensitive collaboration, as well. But, lacking face-to-face interactions, human nature makes it far easier to blow off our responsibilities. As a result, high levels of personal initiative prove far more important with online education than in-person programs.

Online Education Just Isn’t as Good as In-Person

This is hard to hear for many people, but it’s the truth: all else being equal, an online education just isn’t as good as an in-person one. In other words, if you have the choice to complete the same college degree from the same school, you’ll take more away from the in-person, traditional degree than the online one.

Traditional classrooms simply provide a large amount of collaboration, discussion, and critical debate that online programs cannot fully replicate. Additionally, even the best online professors cannot provide an in-person level of support. If students struggle with a particular topic, this can make online education even more challenging.

NOTE: The article’s author has completed both undergraduate and graduate degrees in traditional classroom settings and fully online. The above assessment comes from both research and his personal experiences.

Despite this reality, online education can be an outstanding option in the right situation – particularly for active military members and veterans transitioning out of the service. But, before committing to this approach, consider the below pros and cons.

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Pros of an Online Education

Flexibility

Without a doubt, flexibility serves as the largest advantage to online education. With in-person classes, you need to attend lectures on a set schedule. This can make balancing work, family, and school nearly impossible. When you study online, you can largely craft your own schedule. If you prefer doing your school work first thing in the morning, do it then. If you have a full-time job, you can do your work in the evenings or on weekends.

Yes, online programs may have some hard dates/times students must follow. But, generally speaking, online education offers students far more flexibility than in-person schooling.

Tackle Topics at Your Own Pace

If you’ve been out of the classroom for an extended period – like most veterans – in-person lectures can quickly overwhelm you. When a professor breezes through a particularly complex topic, you can feel completely overwhelmed. And, when surrounded by a bunch of younger students, the last thing you’ll want to do is stop the class to admit you don’t understand the material.

With online degrees, you absorb lectures and readings at your own pace. Many professors assign reading and pre-recorded lectures. This way, if you don’t understand a topic, you can press pause on the lecture, re-read the relevant material, and move forward when you have a better grasp. Alternatively, you can e-mail or call a professor for one-on-one assistance.

Cost

Though not always the case, many online degrees cost less than in-person ones. If a college only offers online education, it avoids many of the costs associated with running a traditional, brick-and-mortar university. Most online schools pass on these savings to students in the form of more inexpensive tuition.

Additionally, students indirectly save money by studying online. When you attend in-person classes, you need to pay for the regular class commutes and parking. You avoid these costs when you can “go to class” in your own home.

Responsive Instructional Technology

Another major advantage to online degrees – particularly in more technical fields – relates to instructional technology. Due to the fact that these students cannot receive instant feedback from professors, the instructional technology needs to provide that level of instant responsiveness. This reality means that many online programs offer incredible instructional technology to assist with remote learning.

For example, when you submit an accounting problem set in a traditional classroom, you need to wait for a professor (or TA) to grade it to find out whether you did it correctly. Conversely, when you do that same problem set online, you’ll get instant feedback on A) whether it’s correct, and more importantly, B) the appropriate solution. This system reinforces the learning process, as students know right away whether they’re on the right track – and how to improve if not.

Cons of an Online Education

Reputation in the Job Market

Once again, we need to provide some hard truth: generally speaking, online degrees are not held in the same esteem as traditional ones in the job market. As more and more people complete online education, this will likely change – but only to an extent. In some industries, online degrees unfortunately have worse reputations than in-person ones.

However, for some jobs, employers focus more on on-the-job training. In these situations, an online degree may meet the job requirements while not disadvantaging you in the application process. Bottom line, before considering an online education, you should think about what you want to do with that education. If employers in your desired field don’t care how you completed your degree, the online path may make sense.

Lack of Face-to-Face Interaction

As stated, pressing pause on pre-recorded online lectures has some benefits. But, these advantages typically don’t outweigh what students lose without face-to-face interaction. In a classroom, a tremendous educational value exists to spontaneous discussion and debate. These interactions just do a better job building critical thinking and helping absorb complicated material than online education can provide.

Question Lags

Unfortunately, some online professors don’t do a great job responding to student inquiries. If you have a question about a challenging topic or particular assignment, this lack of responsiveness can derail your work. Even the most responsive professors will have a lag in answering questions. And, if you need that question answered to move forward, you’re stuck until you get a response.

These lags can make learning complex topics feel particularly overwhelming, too. In a traditional classroom, you may not want to ask a question in front of the whole class. But, you can also visit the professor during office hours, getting one-on-one instruction until you feel comfortable with a topic. E-mail and online discussion boards cannot provide this same level of support.

Computer Familiarity Requirement

Lastly, online education inherently requires a familiarity with computers. For younger students, this is likely a non-issue. But, if you decide to return back to school following years out of the classroom, this requirement can pose a major obstacle. Fortunately, most online programs offer in-depth tutorials on their instructional software during student orientation periods.

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Questions to Ask Universities

After considering the above general pros and cons of an online education, students still need to review individual schools. Before committing to a particular institution, we highly recommend asking the below questions. Unfortunately, with the amount of money the GI Bill pours into higher education, many less-than-reputable schools have sprung up just to make money – not truly educate veterans. Asking these questions can help you sort the good from the bad in online education programs.

What is your accreditation status?

According to the US Department of Education, college accreditation helps ensure “that education provided by institutions of higher education meets acceptable levels of quality.” When a school has been accredited, it has met the acceptable quality standards of an accrediting agency. As a result, the college reports that it has been accredited by that particular agency. On the other hand, a college that has not been accredited is known as an unaccredited college.

As a rule, do not attend an unaccredited college. But, even within accredited institutions, some accreditations are better than others. Two broad categories of accreditation exist: regional and national.

Most people assume something national must be better than something regional. But, this isn’t typically the case with accreditations. Rather, colleges and employers typically respect regional accreditation more than national. To achieve regional accreditation, colleges need to meet far stricter standards than national ones. These higher standards translate directly into higher quality education at regionally accredited schools. Regional accreditations include:

• Accrediting Commission for Community and Junior Colleges
• Western Association of Schools and Colleges
• Higher Learning Commission
• Middle States Commission on Higher Education
• New England Association of Schools and Colleges
• Commission on Institutions of Higher Education
• Southern Association of Colleges and Schools
• WASC Senior College and University Commission

What are your veteran graduation rates?

More precisely, you should ask both A) how many veterans begin their degrees, and B) how many actually graduate? This will help you determine how much support these schools provide to their veteran students. A low graduation rate likely means one of two things. Either the school doesn’t care about its veterans’ academic success, or the quality of education proves so low that veterans choose not to finish their degrees.

What job placement support/counseling do you offer veterans?

Most veterans go to school to get a job after graduation. The best universities provide job placement support and counseling to help veterans with this process. Completing your degree online shouldn’t mean sacrificing these services. Accordingly, before enrolling in an online program, you should confirm that the school offers job placement support.

What are your job placement statistics for veteran graduates?

This question directly relates to the above one. While an online program may say it offers job placement counseling, hard statistics prove it. For example, an online program may promote its computer science degree. If this degree program is as good as the school claims, most graduates of the program should have jobs related to computer science.

If a school can’t back up its job placement claims with workplace statistics, proceed with caution.

Final Thoughts

Online degree programs can be a great option – particularly for veterans balancing school, work, and family. But, before committing to one of these programs, make sure to review the above pros and cons of an online education.

And, regardless of how you attend school, your ultimate success or failure depends on the work you put into the program. If you don’t work hard, it doesn’t matter whether you attend school online or in-person.

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Maurice “Chipp” Naylon spent nine years as an infantry officer in the Marine Corps. He is currently a licensed CPA specializing in real estate development and accounting.

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