A recent study found a majority of Army National Guardsman are not using the exact benefits that enticed them to enlist in the first place. Over half military members and veterans surveyed responded that they joined for the educational benefits. However 53% of those that cited that as the reason they joined have not used it.
State Tuition Assistance
Almost all states and territories offer some form of tuition assistance to their Army National Guard members; the only holdout is Guam, which does not have any education benefits at all for its members. Forty-two states offer free tuition at either public or private colleges and universities; some states offer tuition assistance for both types of schools.
Some states only offer free tuition up to the first four-year degree. But certain states have taken this benefit even further and also cover up to a graduate degree. This page shows what education benefit each state and territory offers their National Guard soldiers.
Joint Services Transcript (JST)
Approximately 30% of National Guard soldiers have not requested their JST report; another 25% have never heard of JST. Most soldiers have some credits on their JST based on their Military Occupation Specialty (MOS), training, rank, time in service and other variables that could be transferred to a school. Some soldiers get enough credits to forgo a semester of school while getting their degree. Getting a JST not only saves time to your degree, but also conserves GI Bill entitlement. To request your JST, go here.
Army e-Learning Program
This program is free to National Guard members and has over 3,500 web-based courses in Information Technology, Business Leadership and Personal Development. Not only do many of the courses offer ACE college credits for completing the course, but enlisted soldiers also earn 1 promotion point per 5 hours of training completed. Sign up here to explore Army e-Learning.
Education Services Officers
This is another underused education benefit. Each state has dedicated education counselors trained to help National Guard soldiers explore and navigate all the education benefits available to them. Many ESOs work their magic through a variety of programs that enable soldiers to get their degree with no out-of-pockets costs. Use this page to find the ESOs in your state.
Dr. Kenneth Hardy, Chief of the Army National Guard Education Services Branch and his team are working hard by raising the awareness of the education programs available to Army National Guard members in an effort so that more members can use the reason they signed up for the National Guard in the first place – education benefits. If you are not using your education benefits, you are literally leaving money on the table. It is your benefit – use it but use it wisely!
