GI Bill Full Time Requirements (Including Summer)

The VA does not make it easy figuring out the minimum requirements for full time student status on the GI Bill. We've all seen a government website right? ;-D 

You probably also know that there are significant benefits to being full time vs part time when using your GI Bill benefits. 

If you’re wondering how much you can receive from your GI Bill benefits for going to school full time, here is the quick answer:

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The GI Bill pays for the full in-state tuition costs for public schools, or an annual maximum amount of $24,476.79 for private schools, whether you are taking up an undergraduate course or working towards a postgraduate degree. This is provided that you are at 100% eligibility percentage, and are studying at a full time rate, which is typically equivalent to 12 credit hours for undergraduate programs.

For undergraduate courses, 12 credit hours is typically considered as the number of credit hours for a full time rate of pursuit. Whereas for postgraduate courses, it is usually around 6 to 9 units.

However, these numbers may slightly vary from school to school. Therefore, the school you are attending (or plan to attend) is the one who determines how many credit hours they consider as full time, and that school relays that information to the VA.

The VA then follows this as a guide on calculating how much of your GI Bill benefits you are entitled to use.

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How Many Credit Hours is Full Time for Summer Classes?

Summer classes and other accelerated programs have a different consideration for full time studies, which can go anywhere from 6 to 9 units.

Again, this varies depending on your school, so the VA follows the school’s prescribed full time rate.

Furthermore, payments of tuition costs for the summer term are calculated based on the equivalent rates for regular semesters. 

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How Many Credit Hours is Full Time for Online Classes?

Sometimes, online classes follow the class structure of a physical brick-and-mortar school, but a lot of other institutions and programs have an entirely different structure on their own. This also goes for prescribing requirements on the number of credit hours you need to be considered as a full time student.

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Because of this, the VA also bases your payment rates on a school-to-school basis with regard to GI Bill benefits for online classes.

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Nonetheless, whether you are studying during the regular semester, during the summer, or through an online program, the amount of money you can receive from your GI Bill benefits should be the same, provided that you are studying at a full time rate.

Otherwise, your receivable benefits amount is prorated based on your rate of pursuit.

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Am I Eligible to Receive a Monthly Housing Allowance?

While a lot of GI Bill and other VA programs can be used in paying for college and postgraduate tuition costs, the Post 9/11 GI Bill is currently the only GI Bill program that provides a monthly housing allowance for eligible recipients.

You can receive this Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA) benefit, also referred to as BAH, provided that you:

• Are eligible to receive benefits under the Post 9/11 GI Bill,
• Are studying at a VA approved school/ institution/ training facility,
• Are not an active duty trainee/ receiving transferred benefits, and
• Are studying on at least a 50% rate of pursuit (greater than half-time)

The MHA rate is based on the average Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) for an E-5 with dependents, and is further calculated based on the physical location/ zip code of where you are attending most of your classes (not where your school is located).

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You can check how much you can receive based on your school by doing a search on the GI Bill Comparison Tool. Access it through this link.

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Can I get a Monthly Housing Allowance if I’m Taking Online Classes?

If you are pursuing your education through an online program, we have good news for you: you can still get a monthly housing allowance!

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The thing is, if you are taking all of your classes online, you are entitled to only half of the national average, which is around $894.50. 

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Here’s a great way around that one:

If you have at least one class that you are taking at a physical school, then you can take advantage of the full MHA rate, so make that extra effort to drive out once a week and go to that class!

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Moreover, while the minimum requirement to qualify for a housing allowance is a 50% rate of pursuit, how much you can actually get still depends on whether or not you are studying full time. 

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The more classes you have during the semester, the more money you can get from your GI Bill benefits!

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How Long Does It Take to Get My Post 9/11 GI Bill Money?

Applying for GI Bill benefits and using them to pay for your education is as easy as logging on to your VA eBenefits Portal account and filling out an application. If you provide complete and accurate information, your application can be processed within 30 days. 

And, as soon as your application is approved, you can start receiving money!

Here’s how GI Bill payments generally work

• The tuition costs are paid by the VA directly to your school at the end of each semester
• The monthly housing allowance is paid to you at the end of each month
• The books and supplies stipend is provided to you immediately upon approval of your application

What Other Benefits Can I Get From the GI Bill?

Aside from paying for your tuition costs, as well as providing a monthly housing allowance and a yearly books and supplies stipend (which can be as much as $1,000 depending on your eligibility), the GI Bill also offers other added benefits to assist you in pursuing your education.

These include:

• A one-time rural benefit of $500 is provided for covered individuals who are relocating from highly rural areas in order to attend an institution of higher learning that is either at least 500 miles away from his or her current residence, or can only be reached by air travel from the individual’s current residence.
• Tutor assistance is also provided for covered individuals who are having difficulty with a classes and require help. The VA provides up to $1,200 (with a maximum of $100 per month) for accredited tutors and comes at no additional charge to your entitlement benefits. This is provided that you are receiving benefits under a GI Bill program, have a deficiency in a required course, are studying on at least a 50% rate of pursuit, and requiring tutor assistance during the semester in which your course falls under.