To apply for VA Education Benefits visit the VA’s website. Also, check out our Certification of Benefits page.
To enroll at A-B Tech, please follow the steps on our Admissions page. For additional information about the types of benefits for which you may qualify please visit the Department of Veteran Affairs Educational Benefits page.
In a full 16-week Fall or Spring semester, 12-credits is full-time. In the 8-week mini-mesters, 6 credits are full-time. Summer semesters are generally 8-10 weeks long and 6-7 credits, respectively, are full-time in Summer.
Yes, you are eligible to apply for financial aid through FAFSA as any other student would. Even if you receive additional Veteran Readiness & Employment (Ch 31), you may be eligible for financial aid. Check out the Financial Aid web page for more information about applying for Student Aid.
While many other types of aid can be used with the GI Bill there are certain types of funding that may affect Post 9-11 GI Bill tuition and fee payments. If you have questions about what types of funding can/can’t be used, contact the Veteran Services Coordinator at veteranservices@abtech.edu and tell them about the funding you expect to receive so they can evaluate whether it will impact GI Bill certifications/payments.
Many students receiving MGIB-Active Duty (Chapter 30) benefits, as well as those in the Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606), must verify their enrollment each month to receive payment for that month. Your enrollment can be verified on the last calendar day of the month by using Web Automated Verification of Enrollment (WAVE) or by calling the toll-free Interactive Voice Response (IVR) telephone line at (877) 823-2378.
Chapter 35 (Dependents Educational Assistance) students who are in non-degree (certificate and diploma) programs can verify their attendance by calling the GI Bill Hotline at 1-888-GI-BILL-1.
Post 9-11 GI Bill students should receive a text message or email from the VA each month asking the student to verify their attendance. The student must respond to this inquiry or their payments may be stopped.
Students must adhere to the Academic Standards Policy of A-B Tech. A-B Tech notifies the VA within thirty days of any change in status or failure to meet satisfactory progress. Typically, a student has to maintain a cumulative GPA of 2.0 to remain in good academic standing.
In general, if you withdraw from any class(es) the VA will want you to pay back all funds you received for being in that class, this includes money paid to you or the school by the VA.
There are some exceptions to this, however. If you have a qualifying “mitigating circumstance” the VA will prorate the debt by how much of the class you attended.
When you complete your Withdraw Request form, you will need to have your instructor(s) provide your Last Date of Attendance, as this information is required by VA.
For VA Education Benefits, contact the Department of Veteran Affairs at (888) 442-4551. or, for Tuition Assistance, ask your Educational Liaison.
Post 9-11 GI Bill recipients can view a Statement of Benefits through the VA’s website.
Students must notify the Veteran Services Coordinator after registration every semester so benefits can be processed.
There are a couple of considerations in determining when to expect payment.
First, your classes need to be certified by the VA. After this is done, it usually takes the VA about 30 days to process the certification and schedule the payment(s). However, during busy times of the year, it can take longer.
Additionally, the VA pays stipend money to students “on the first of the month following the month you earned the money in”. So, if your classes start in mid-August you should receive your first payment on September 1st, assuming you were certified far enough in advance that the VA has had time to process your certification.
The exception to this is that the Post 9-11 GI Bill occasionally pays the “book stipend” earlier than the monthly BAH, but not always. Every student should be prepared to start the semester without their VA money. This is one reason it can be helpful to apply for Financial Aid and to submit your schedule for certification ASAP.
In general, students are responsible for their own tuition and fees. However, students who expect to receive any VA Education Benefit, and who have proof of their eligibility for their benefit, may be eligible for a payment deadline extension to allow the VA time to pay. This is another reason it is important to notify the Veteran Services Coordinator as soon as you register for classes.
Students who are eligible for a benefit that pays the school directly, like the Post 9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33), Veteran Readiness & Employment (Chapter 31) (formerly called VA Vocational Rehabilitation), and the Tuition Assistance Program, may not have to pay their tuition but are still responsible for any balance not covered by their benefit.
The Montgomery GI Bill (Chapters 30 and 1606) and Dependents Educational Assistance (Chapter 35) benefits are a monthly allotment that gets paid via check or direct deposit directly to the student. Therefore the student will need to pay their tuition or secure other funding to cover it.
VA Education Benefit recipients can only be certified for coursework required for completion of their program of study after the application of any transfer credit. Any course substitutions must be approved and documented by the Department Chairperson and a copy filed in the Veteran Services Coordinator’s office. Veterans may only take approved/required deficiency/remedial courses specifically required for the completion of their program.
Submit your Joint Service Transcript to our Registrar’s Office at registrar@abtech.edu.
Air Force veterans/service members will order their transcripts through CCAF.
While you can retake classes you’ve already passed, the VA will not allow them to be certified. Usually, a “D” or better is considered passing, though some programs/classes may require a “C” or better to be considered passing. If you “passed” the class before, the VA will not allow it to be certified again, even if you didn’t technically get a “failing” (“F”) grade.
No, any Veterans' benefits paid under any law administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) should not be reported as income to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS).
- Chapter 35: Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance Program (DEA): DEA provides education and training opportunities to eligible dependents of veterans who are 100% disabled or deceased due to military service.
- Transfer of Entitlement (ToE): Service members may transfer Chapter 33 benefits to a spouse or dependent children. Must serve six years & reenlist for 4 more years or have at least 10 years of service, then the transfer is possible.
- FRY Scholarship: FRY provides benefit eligibility for children of active-duty members of the Armed Forces who died in the line of duty after September 10, 2001.
- MyCAA: Military Spouse Career Advancement Account program provides an education benefit of $4,000, with an annual fiscal year cap of $2,000 to assist eligible military spouses in acquiring professional credentials.