From the Philippines to Iceland, an increasing number of U.S. military veterans are heading overseas to complete degrees at global universities, thanks to the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
Many veterans say appealing aspects of studying at an overseas college include learning another language and receiving cheaper tuition, thanks in part to the exchange rate.
[Read these reasons to earn a bachelor’s degree overseas.]
U.S. Navy veteran Stephen Evans, 26, from Fort Smith, Arkansas, is studying for an undergraduate degree, referred to as a Master of Arts, at the University of Aberdeen in Aberdeen, Scotland. While searching for universities on the Department of Veterans Affairs website, he was surprised to find that he could use the benefits overseas.
“I decided to study in Scotland because I preferred their educational system to that of the U.S.,” he said via email. “Here, we are not required to take ‘core curriculum’ classes such as math, English, history and science, but instead have the opportunity to explore whatever subject matter the university offers as long as we take the required credit amount.”
Henry R. Charles, 31, from Virginia Beach, Virginia, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps and then the U.S. Army from 2002 to 2011, is completing a Master of Science in international transport at Cardiff University in Cardiff, Wales.
Charles says he chose Cardiff University because the one-year postgraduate specialty degree was shorter than any equivalent in the U.S., helping to maximize his three years of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits.
The VA’s list of approved international colleges now includes around 1,800 universities or training schools in more than 100 countries, says Curtis L. Coy, VA deputy undersecretary for economic opportunity. Countries include Colombia in South America, Romania in Europe and New Zealand.
According to VA statistics, 2,007 Post-9/11 GI Bill students pursued either undergraduate or postgraduate degrees overseas in fiscal year 2015 compared with 806 in fiscal year 2010. Popular countries included the Philippines, Australia, the United Kingdom, Germany and various other countries in Europe.
Choosing a University
U.S. veterans interested in pursuing an international education can either use the GI Bill Comparison Tool to review the VA’s approved list of universities or search for a specific college through the Web Enabled Approval Management System Institution Search. Both tools are available on the VA website.
The GI Bill Comparison Tool also helps veterans determine which benefits package is most suitable for them, including whether the package will provide enough money to study overseas. Veterans will need to account for a country’s exchange rate in their calculations.
If a veteran’s preferred college is not on the approved list, he or she can apply to have the school added, provided it meets the VA’s eligibility requirements.
One of the main requirements is that any training at a foreign school must be at an institution of higher learning that will result in a college degree or equivalent, according to the VA’s website. If eligible, the VA will issue the veteran a Certificate of Eligibility, which shows the quantity and duration of benefits; veterans should obtain this before enrolling at a foreign university.
Xiangyu (Sheila) Wu, international enrolment services officer at Cambrian College in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada, says that once veterans know if the foreign university is VA-approved, they should complete the school’s application process.
She says, ideally, those applying to foreign colleges should submit applications for their GI Bill benefits between three to six months prior to school starting.
Coy from the VA says the Post-9/11 GI Bill pays up to $21,000 in tuition per year at approved foreign colleges, about $1,500 per month for housing and $1,000 annually for books.
[Understand how to calculate the cost of an overseas degree.]
Shared Benefits
The Post-9/11 GI Bill, which replaced the Montgomery GI Bill in 2009, has also opened up global education opportunities to eligible veterans’ family members. Active-duty service members must plan to complete 10 years of service to be eligible to transfer some or all of the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to a spouse or children.
Coy says that after the service members leave the military, they cannot transfer the benefits; as such, they need to make plans prior to leaving the military.
Rose Field, 24, of Flourtown, Pennsylvania, moved to Germany in 2009 to attend college and learn German. She recently completed her master’s in curatorial studies at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University Frankfurt am Main. Her father, a major, has been a reservist in the Pennsylvania National Guard and Army Reserve since 1985.
“My father has always been a reservist, but was deployed post-9/11, which is how I became GI Bill eligible,” Field said via email. Reservists who complete 90 days or more of active duty and remain on active duty become eligible for some GI Bill benefits.
“I was only eligible for 50 per cent of benefits, which meant that I still had to work outside the stipend to pay for everything I needed,” Field said.
Ultimately, studying in another country is an “unbelievable opportunity,” Navy veteran Evans said. “More veterans should take the opportunity to study overseas.”
See the complete rankings of the Best Global Universities.
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More Veterans Use GI Bill Benefits to Study Overseas originally appeared on usnews.com
