Will My Post 9/11 GI Bill Pay for Classes At Two Different Schools?
Q: Ron, I am currently in college using my Post 9/11 GI Bill benefits. If I wanted to take college courses from another school while still attending my current university, will my GI Bill benefits pay for both schools at the same time? Thanks in advance for your time and help.
A: Yes it will. How that happens is the university that will award your degree is designated as your primary school. The other school you will attend is your secondary school. The key to making this work is the classes you take at your secondary school must pertain and be credited to your Post 9/11 GI Bill degree plan at your primary school.
Your primary school will draft a letter to your secondary school as far as which classes you will be taking there. Once you have finished those classes, then your secondary school must create a transcript and send it to your primary school. Your primary school will apply those credits to your degree plan, thus reducing the number of credits you need to graduate.
What won’t work, is for you to take a bunch of non-degree plan related classes at the secondary school. Not only would they not apply to your degree plan, the VA will not pay for them and you in the end, would have to pay for these classes out-of-pocket.
Also, there usually have to be some reason why you need to take classes at a different school, such as filled enrollment at your primary school or they do not offer all the classes you need for your degree plan.
Do what you need to do, but don’t make it any more complicated than it needs to be.