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Tuition assistance: Marine Corps

The Marine Corps provides up to 100 percent tuition assistance to all active-duty and Reserve enlisted Marines on continuous active duty attending accredited colleges and universities, according to Marine Administrative message 571/05.

Tuition-assistance funding is limited to $250 per semester hour or equivalent in undergraduate, graduate, vocational and technical classes, independent study and distance-learning programs. Marines may not exceed $4,500 in tuition-assistance funds each fiscal year.

Active-duty officers may receive TA funding if they agree to stay on active duty for two continuous years after completing the TA-funded course, the message states.

TA funds “are authorized for study or degree at a higher academic level than that currently held,” the message states. If prerequisites for the next higher degree are required by the academic institution, TA funds may be used for up to nine semester hours of those prerequisites.

TA funds may not be used for courses that end after a Marine’s end of service date or for books, computers or “other tangible items.”

More tuition programs

• Montgomery G.I. Bill

Marines may sign up for the Montgomery G.I. Bill during their initial enlistment. A monthly deduction of $100 is made from a participant’s paycheck for the first year of his enlistment. Then, a Marine can use the G.I. Bill at any time up to 10 years after his honorable discharge. Those on active duty may use it in conjunction with tuition assistance. The bill provides about $1,000 a month for full-time students at colleges, technical schools or vocational programs. The amount is smaller for part-time students.

• Marine Corps College Fund

The Marine Corps College Fund provides tuition money in addition to the G.I. Bill. The fund is available to Marines who demonstrate potential for academic excellence and is listed on eligible Marines’ contracts during their initial enlistment.