Becoming Who You Want To Be

Veterans, are you using your GI Bill to its full potential?

Would you be able to describe the distinctions between the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the older Montgomery Bill? Do you know which one of the two you qualify for, one or both and are you using the best one for your educational needs.

These questions are important for you to answer because you need to make a irrevocable choice of which benefit you wish to receive. This is an important decision, because obviously you’re going to want to get the most money that’s available.

Here are a few reasons why the two bills are different.

The Post-9/11 Bill pays for tuition and fees (paid to the school), not greater than charged by the most expensive state Institution of Higher Education in the state you are attending classes.

Under this Bill you also are entitled to a monthly housing allowance. The payments are based on the housing allowance for an E-5 with dependents and the zip code of the location of the school you will be attending.

Eligible candidates can receive stipends up to $1,000 for textbooks, in addition to $500 to cover qualified candidate’s relocation costs.

The Montgomery GI Bill is simple a monthly allowance which at the time of writing this was $1,321 for a full time student that has at least 3 years of active service.

Even though it seems like the Post-9/11 choice puts you at an advantage, you need to factor in things like cost of attendance to see where you come out ahead.

You only get to pick once, and you want to be paid the most, so before committing to anything, talk with the people at the school. Before you figure things out, determine the housing expenses in the area of your school and look at the allowance given to you under the new GI bill for that area.

A school that is used to working with GI bills will make the process much easier, and will know what to look for so that you can get the best possible deal out of this.

If you are a veteran you earned these benefits by serving your country, and should take full advantage of the best option for you and your family.