Active Duty Army, National Guard & Army Reserve Tuition Assistance
The Tuition Assistance (TA) Program, as mapped out in AR 621-5, is designed to assist soldiers in achieving their educational and professional goals by providing financial assistance for voluntary off-duty education programs. The program’s major function is to help retain quality soldiers, by assisting with their career progression, thus improving the combat readiness of the Army. TA can also assist soldiers with their transition into civilian employment by providing the funds needed to gain employment upon their discharge.
TA can be used to complete high school diplomas, Associates, Bachelors & Masters degrees and vocational certificate programs. Courses must be offered by accredited schools that are registered in GoArmyEd, and are recognized by the Department of Education. TA is not authorized for programs beyond a master’s degree and will not be approved to complete credentials at the recipient’s current level of education or lower. Classes can be taken in a classroom or online.
Under the TA program, the Army agrees to pay up to 100% of tuitions and fees, with a semester hour cap of $250 per unit/credit hour and an annual ceiling of $4,500. Current Army policy limits TA to 130 semester hours of undergraduate credit or baccalaureate degree, whichever comes first and 39 semester hours of graduate credit or master’s degree whichever comes first. The 39 semester hour limit applies to all credits taken after completion of a baccalaureate degree.
Since February 15, 2002, the Army will pay Tuition Assistance for their Service members only. Soldiers assigned to installations that are host to another Service will be referred by the local education center to the closest servicing center.
Enlisted personnel who use TA must have enough time left on their enlistment and at their current duty station to complete their courses.
Officers who use TA will incur a service obligation: Active Duty officers incur an Active Duty Service Obligation (ADSO) of two years and Reserve Component officers incur a Reserve Duty Service Obligation (RDSO) of four years. The ADSO/RDSO is calculated from the date of completion of the last course for which TA was used.
Eligibility:
Soldiers (Enlisted, Officers, Warrant & TPU Warrant Officers) on active duty are eligible for Tuition Assistance.
Army National Guard Soldiers on federal active duty deployed under U.S. Code, Title 10, are eligible for GoArmyEd Tuition Assistance (TA).
Army Reserve Soldiers on active duty deployed under U.S. Code Title 10 are eligible for Tuition Assistance.
Army Reserve Soldiers on drill status are eligible for Tuition Assistance.
Army National Guard Soldiers on state active duty or on drill status are not eligible for GoArmyEd Tuition Assistance (TA). However, they can use the Army National Guard Federal Tuition Assistance (FTA).
FTA operates on a limited, first come-first served, basis and is not a guaranteed benefit. The program will pay up to 100% of tuitions and fees with a caps of $250 per semester unit and $4,500 per soldier per fiscal year.
Eligibility for FTA begins the day the member joins the ARNG, even prior to boot camp or AIT. Recipients must have a valid expense from an accredited school.
Enlisted recipients of FTA must remain in the ARNG during the duration of their courses. Officers must serve for four years after the completion of their courses.
All TA for Active Duty, USAR, and FTA for ARNG Soldiers must be requested through GoArmyEd.