VA Education Benefits

How to Apply for VA Education Benefits

1. Determine your eligibility for the VA education benefit program.
2. Apply online through the How To Apply For The GI Bill® portal on the Veterans Affairs website.
3. Once you complete the online application, you'll receive a "Certificate of Eligibility (COE)".
4. Email a copy of your COE to the College at veterans@cambridgecollege.edu for verification purposes.
5. After the ADD/DROP period or session, the College will send your tuition, fee and course schedule information to the VA for payment.
6. The VA will pay the College based on your eligibility percentage.
7. Check with your organization to find out when they will release the funds to the College for your tuition and fees.
8. If your benefits don't cover 100% of the costs, consider exploring options like the "Yellow Ribbon Program," financial aid or a payment plan to cover the remaining expenses.

Questions?

Contact the VA online
Call the GI Bill® Hotline: 888-442-4551

Available Benefits by Chapter

• Chapter 30 – The Montgomery GI Bill®
• Chapter 31 – Vocational Rehabilitation
• Chapter 33 – The Post 9/11 GI Bill® for Veterans
• Chapter 33 – The Post 9/11 GI Bill® for Dependents
• Chapter 35 – Survivors and Dependents Assistance Program
• Chapter 1606 – Montgomery GI Bill® Selected Reserve
• Chapter 1607 – Reserve Educational Assistance

Note: Approved for VA benefits, Cambridge College encourages eligible students to consult their Educational Services Officer (ESO) or military counselor before enrolling.

Yellow Ribbon Program

Cambridge College is proud to participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program to provide funding for tuition costs not covered by the Post-9/11 GI Bill®.

Learn More About the Yellow Ribbon Program

Cambridge College Policies and Procedures

Enrollment Changes

Enrollment status is crucial for benefits.

• The College regularly updates the VA on enrollment changes, including add/drops, withdrawals and other factors.
• Such changes may impact benefit amounts and lead to overpayments or repayment obligations to the VA.
• Additionally, the VA may not cover repeated or withdrawn courses.

Transfer of Credit Evaluation

Transfer credit: All students receiving veterans' benefits will have all prior education and training evaluated upon enrollment. Credit will be awarded where applicable, with the program being shortened accordingly. The student and the Department of Veteran Affairs will be notified.

Prior learning assessment to earn college credit and shorten your program: Veterans enrolled in undergraduate programs are encouraged to consider documenting their learning derived from experience through standardized college-level exams and portfolios that demonstrate learning equivalent to specific college courses.

Review Transfer Credit Policy

View Approved Courses and Transfer Credit for Military Students Policy

Academic Progress

Progress will be monitored each term for all students receiving veterans benefits. If an undergraduate student's cumulative GPA falls below 2.0 (graduate programs 3.0) or completion rate falls below 67% (graduate programs 50%) in all courses attempted at Cambridge College in any term, they will be placed on academic probation for a maximum of two additional terms. Suppose the student's GPA or completion rate is not raised to meet graduation standards by the end of the second term of probation. In that case, the Veterans Administration will be notified and benefits will be interrupted.

Conditions for Reentrance: If the dean or regional center director determines that the conditions that caused the interruption have been rectified, the student will be eligible to receive benefits.

Delayed Disbursement of VA Funding

Students entitled to educational assistance under Chapter 31, Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment, or Chapter 33, Post-9/11 GI Bill® benefits with 100% coverage by the VA will not have financial aid or business Registration holds placed upon their accounts if they are unable to meet their financial obligations to the College due to the delayed disbursement funding from VA under chapter 31 or 33. No late fees, denial of access to classes or College facilities, requirement to borrow funds, or other penalties will be imposed upon students for whom the VA is delayed in disbursing educational assistance. These students will be permitted to attend or participate in a course of education during the period beginning on the date on which the student provides to the College a certificate of eligibility for entitlement to educational assistance under chapter 31 or 33 and ending on the earlier of the following dates:

• The date on which payment from VA is made to the institution.
• 90 days after the date the institution certified tuition and fees after receiving the certificate of eligibility.

(A “certificate of eligibility” can also include a “Statement of Benefits” obtained from the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) website – eBenefits, or a VAF 28-1905 form for chapter 31 authorization purposes.)

Tuition Refund

Students receiving military tuition assistance who withdraw from a course before completing 61% of the course will be subject to the College's refund policy.

See the Military Tuition Assistance Refund Policy

Readmission of Military Servicemembers

Cambridge College will readmit students whose studies were interrupted due to military service.

Per federal regulations regarding readmission requirements for military servicemembers (34 C.F.R. 668.18), any student who withdraws from Cambridge College because of absence due to a military service obligation will be readmitted with the same academic status as previously held if the following conditions are met:

• The student (or an appropriate officer of the armed forces or official of the Department of Defense) must give Cambridge College notice of such service as far in advance as is reasonable under the circumstances. Alternatively, at the time of readmission, the student may submit an attestation of military service that necessitated the student’s absence from the College.
• The student must submit proper notification of intent to return to school within three years of completing military service or within two years of recovery from illness or injury resulting from service.
• The cumulative length of the absence and of all previous absences from the College because of military service may not exceed five years (only the time the student spends performing service is counted). Should the served time exceed five years, the student must reapply to the College through the Admissions Office.

Contractual Relations Between Military Students and Cambridge College

Date of Last Revision: May 2022

Cambridge College's mission is to provide academically excellent, time-efficient and cost-effective higher education for a diverse population of working adults for whom those opportunities may have been limited or denied.

As a consequence, Cambridge College's commitment to military students is broad. Our administrative staff and faculty are fully committed to helping Military Servicemembers, Veterans and dependents reach their educational goals. At Cambridge College, we offer a personalized approach to assist our students. We are trained and experienced in providing this same level of care for Military Servicemembers, Veterans and their dependents. Many of our staff and faculty have served in the armed forces and understand military families' daily challenges. We are here to help them successfully navigate from Admissions through graduation. There is a tuition discount available to Military Servicemembers and their dependents. Undergraduate tuition is reduced to the amount covered by the federal Tuition Assistance Program; the rate is subject to change. We do not charge out-of-state tuition to our Military Servicemembers or their dependents.

The school is approved by the Puerto Rico State Approving Agency to provide academic training to the students under the various GI Bill® programs. In Puerto Rico, Cambridge College is committed to complying with PR Law No. 109 of April 11, 2003 Law, which regulates contractual relations between military students of post-secondary education. The commitment of the College as per the provisions of the law, which states that higher education institutions must adopt the policies, standards, and procedures aimed at addressing the following measures:

1. Refunds, refunds of payments, or credit for the courses left

• Cambridge College will reimburse, return the money paid for tuition and other expenses paid by the student or grant credit for the courses left when the student proves to the institution that the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States in Puerto Rico or the Puerto Rico National Guard have activated them. Likewise, the student must present original evidence of his activation orders to the Registrar's Office of his institution at least fifteen (15) days before his activation date. Failing that, it will do so within a reasonable period.
• The refund or return will be prorated based on the moment in the semester in which the student has been activated. At the beginning of each academic semester, all students shall notify the institution that they are a member of the Reserves of the Armed Forces of the United States in Puerto Rico or of the National Guard of Puerto Rico.
• Refunds, refunds, or credits for the courses mentioned in the previous paragraphs will be at the request and discretion of the student, according to their convenience. The preceding does not affect the right of the institution to establish a term for any of the options described above, in which the student notifies the institution of the option to which they will apply. If the student does not comply with the terms established by the institution, they must adhere to the option that the institution establishes from those previously described.

2. Reasonable accommodation and priority in case of activations

• When a student is activated by the military body to which they belong, the institution will guarantee him a space in all the courses in which they were enrolled in one of the subsequent two academic semesters or quarters after his inactivation.
• Likewise, the institution must guarantee the activated student, once his term of activation has ended and they wish to continue his studies, accommodation and reasonable priority in the courses in which they were enrolled, or its equivalent at the time of his activation.
• This will be according to the availability of the courses during that semester. Activated students who are candidates for graduation during the semester of their activation will have priority over other students in the accommodation of courses.

3. Withdrawals or incomplete studies

• Cambridge College must indicate in the official credit transcript of the activated student that the reason for their withdrawal or the classification of incomplete studies during the current semester was due to the military activation order.

For additional information, contact the Financial Aid Office at sfs@cambridgecollege.edu.