Fiscal year 2015 brings major changes to military tuition assistance program

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Kate Maurer
  • 100th Air Refueling Wing Public Affairs
RAF MILDENHALL, England --  Major changes to the military Tuition Assistance program went into effect Oct. 1, 2014.

The new changes are outlined in Air Force Instruction 36-2649 "Voluntary Education Program" and affect the application, payment and qualification processes for military TA which should be taken into consideration by anyone planning to use the program.

"The changes seem like the best solution to still give Airmen the benefit of 100 percent tuition assistance under the confines of being financially feasible," said Mark Kjellerson, 100th Force Support Squadron Education Center chief of education and training from Rapid City, S.D.

Beginning with the application process, members planning to sign up for military TA may apply no earlier than 45 calendar days prior to, but no later than seven calendar days before the term starts and TA documentation must be approved by their supervisor within that time frame.

"Members are due for a paradigm shift," Kjellerson said. "Right now the mindset is to put TA applications in at the last minute due to worries of having time for the class or whether the class is good to go, etcetera. Now applications need to be done within those 45 days. I can always cancel the TA if something changes, that's easy, but once the member is within that seven day window [before the class starts], my hands are tied."

For members who forget to apply for TA once a class has started or signed up for a class after its start date, the education center staff will no longer possess the ability to approve military TA.

Airmen who have been inactive in pursuing their education for a year or more will be required to attend a refresher military TA briefing prior to being allowed to apply for military TA again, and all Airmen applying for TA must use the new electronic degree plan (e-degree) plan.  Those who have the old "legacy" degree plan must convert from their old degree plan to the new plan by Oct. 14, 2014, or military TA will be denied until completion of the new e-degree plan. 

Changes regarding the payment process only affect Airmen under certain circumstances. Successful completion of a course is now defined as a grade of "C" or higher for undergraduate courses and a "B" or higher for graduate courses. Members will now have to reimburse for "D"s and "C"s respectively. The courses for which Airmen used TA and have reimbursed the Air Force will be eligible for one retake using TA but courses for which reimbursement was waived, partial or in whole, will not be eligible to use TA for retaking the course.

There was also a change to the Department of Defense Instruction 1322.25 "Voluntary Education Programs" that went into effect July 21, 2014 eliminating payments of all fees associated with military TA.

"Airmen are going to have more responsibility for their own education," Kjellerson said. 

One more change is the amount of semester hours available to members that are using TA. Members will be limited to no more than 124 semester hours, or 186 quarter hours, for a bachelor's degree and 42 semester hours, or 70 quarter hours, for a graduate degree that is paid with TA. This total includes all classes taken at the relevant degree level, excluding undergraduate classes applied purely to a Community College Air Force degree.  

Members will be allowed to only change their degree plan once and only if less than 50 percent of the total current degree has not been completed. Once 50 percent or more has been completed, the member is not authorized to change degree plans.

The certification programs also changed and are now replaced with the Air Force Credentialing Opportunities On-Line program.  The new AF COOL certification program allows Airmen to apply for certification associated with their current primary Air Force specialty code only.  Program funding covers exam costs only and re-certifications up to the cap of $4,500.  To find out more about AF COOL, go to https://afvec.langley.af.mil/afvec/Public/COOL/Default.aspx.

"There are a lot of people that join the Air Force for the education benefits but there needed to be a change so the main core of [TA] can keep going, to make sure it's still doable," Kjellerson said. "My advice for Airmen is to pull up AFI 36-2649 and read through it and contact us if they need help."

For more information, contact the Education Center at DSN 238-2350 or commercial at 01638 542350.