Student Veterans and Dependents Information

Roger Williams University is committed to assisting service members, veterans, spouses, and dependents with utilizing their military benefits to help finance their education.

GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Veterans Affairs web site.

  1. Apply for VA Educational Benefits. More information on how to do so can be found on the VA Website. The VA typically renders a decision within 30 days.
    1. You can skip Step 1 and Step 2 if you have used benefits at RWU before. 
  2. When you receive your Certificate of Eligibility (COE) or other approval letter, send a copy of it to rwumilitary@rwu.edu along with what term you are going to start.
  3. Complete the Student Veteran Certification Form below to the SCO as soon as you have your COE.
  4. Register for classes. If you have questions about which classes to take, contact the SCO and they will put you in touch with your advisor.
  5. Make sure to alert the School Certifying Official to any increases or decreases in credits as it may affect your benefits. If there are significant reductions in your credit load and they are not reported to the VA in a timely manner, you may end up owing the VA for excessive payments. 
  • These benefits are paid on a monthly basis directly to the student, rates can be found on the VA website. 
  • The student is responsible for the entire balance on their student account as the VA does not send the school any money for these chapters.
  • The VA pays in arrears so the student will receive the payment at the beginning of the next month. 
    • For example, the payment for August would be received in the first week of September. 
  • Ch.35 students will need to provide the SCO with the full name and SSN of the veteran if this is their first time using these benefits. 
  • We do not recommend setting up a payment plan with us, because according to VA regulations, students using VA benefits cannot be charged late fees until 90 days after the past due date. The third-party servicer we use for our payment plans applies mandatory late fees that we cannot waive, so we don't recommend it in this situation. Instead, the Bursar's office recommends paying RWU when you receive a payment from the VA, though it is not required that the VA funds be applied to your bill. 
    • In 2023-2024 they paid $1,488 per month, so there is likely to be a balance that the VA benefits don't cover. We recommend exploring additional ways to cover the remaining balance. Students can contact the financial aid office if they need assitance.
  • The SCO should be made aware of any changes to registered credits as it may effect the monthly payments. Failure to report changes in credits may result in the student owing a debt to the VA. 
  • This benefit pays the reported tuition/fees directly to the school. 
  • The SCO will subtract any aid designated for tuition from the amount reported to the VA as required by VA regulations.
    • For example, if tuition is $20,000 and the student receives a $10,000 RWU scholarship the amount reported to the VA will be $10,000. 
  • Chapter 31 benefit recipients may receive a monthly subsistence allowance. The subsistence allowance is paid monthly based on the Veteran's rate of attendance, i.e., full-time, three-quarter time, or half-time, the number of dependents, and the type of training.
    • Chapter 31 subsistence allowance rates are updated every fiscal year in October.
    • Current rates are accessible at the VR&E's website.
  •  An alternate rate referred to as the "Post 9/11 Subsistence Allowance" (P911SA) rate may be elected by a Veteran, who qualifies for the Post-9/11 GI Bill while participating in the CH31 program and is eligible to receive an alternate amount that is equal to the Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH paid to active duty Service members at the E-5 pay grade with dependents based on the zip code where the Veteran is attending the majority of his or her training.
    • The P911 subsistence allowances rates are adjusted each year, effective January 1st.
    • Current rates are accessible at the VR&E's website.
  • It is the student's responsibility to make sure that their VR&E counselor has submitted an active purchase authorization (PO) to the SCO. Without this, the SCO cannot bill the VA for the tuition. 
  • As long as the student has both an active PO and a signed certification form on file, the SCO will have pending aid applied to the student account in the amount expected to be covered by the VA. 
    • This will keep the student account in good standing until after the drop period ends and the SCO requests the funds. 
  • A separate authorization needs to be submitted to the campus bookstore in order for the VA to pay for any required supplies. 
  • Students using this benefit need to get any major changes approved by their VR&E counselor. If the major on the PO doesn't match the student's current major, the SCO will not be allowed to bill the VA. 
  • The SCO should be made aware of any changes to registered credits as it may effect tuition and subsistence allowance. Failure to do so may result in the student owing a debt to the VA. 
  • These benefits pay the reported tuition/fees directly to the school. 
  • The SCO will subtract any aid designated for tuition from the amount reported to the VA as required by VA regulations.
    • For example, if tuition is $20,000 and the student receives a $10,000 RWU scholarship the amount reported to the VA will be $10,000. 
  • The VA sends the reported amount of tuition/fees multiplied by your percentage of eligibility. 
    • Students that have 100% eligibility would get the full $10,000 from the example above. 
    • Students that have 60% eligibility would get $6,000 from the example above.
  • Chapter 33 benefit recipients will receive a Monthly Housing Allowance that is based on the campus location and rate of pursuit. Further information can be found below and on the VA Education Benefits website.
  • Chapter 33 benefit recipients also receive a book/supplies stipend at the start of the semester based on rate of pursuit.
  • As long as the student has both a COE and a signed certification form on file, the SCO will have pending aid applied to the student account in the amount expected to be covered by the VA. 
    • This will keep the student account in good standing until after the drop period ends and the SCO requests the funds. 
  • The SCO should be made aware of any changes to registered credits as it may effect tuition and monthly housing allowance. Failure to do so may result in the student owing a debt to the VA. 

New Post-9/11 GI Bill students are counting on their monthly housing allowance (MHA) benefits to support themselves and their families while they attend school. Given how essential, and complicated, these benefits can be, please keep in mind the following. 

  • MHA is paid only when they are actively enrolled and attending. Breaks between semesters, quarters, or terms are not eligible for MHA reimbursement, which means that no housing payment will be paid for these periods.
  • Housing payments are prorated. Payments are prorated if their course(s) do not span an entire month. If they are certified for part of a month, the payment will be prorated as follows:
  • VA uses a 30-day month. Divide the monthly rate by 30 to get the daily rate. If the courses begin mid-month, starting on the 15th and running through the 30th, then they are entitled to 15/30ths of the full housing rate.
  • Students must have a rate of pursuit over 50% in order to be eligible to receive MHA payments. If their rate of pursuit is equal to or less than 50%, they are not eligible to receive MHA for the certified period.
  • Changes in enrollment can affect their rate of pursuit, which will subsequently affect their MHA. VA always encourages students to talk with you, their School Certifying Official, before they make any changes to their courseload. They can contact VA to see how the change in pursuit may affect their MHA payments.
    • Example 1: dropping a course takes a student’s rate of pursuit from 100% to 90%. This will cause the student’s MHA payments in future months to be prorated. If those months were already paid (the change was not reported before payment), a debt for the overpayment will be assessed.
    • Example 2: terminating all enrollment (dropping all courses) will cause MHA to stop being paid effective the date of termination. If the student was already paid for the full month, or longer, a debt will be assessed for the overpayment.
  • MHA payments are made in arrears, meaning that the student will routinely receive the previous month’s MHA payment during the first week of the following month. While VA will make every effort to make the payment on the first day of the month, students should not be concerned about non-payment until the end of the first business week.
    • Example: course began mid-August. The MHA payment the student receives during the first week of September will be the prorated August MHA payment.
  • Students can use the GI Bill Comparison Tool to estimate how much they would receive each month. 
  • Students will need to plan accordingly to ensure that they are taking courses and using GI Bill benefits in a way that fits their specific needs and so that they maintain their quality of life. If students have any questions they can contact VA (via our Education Call Center at 888-442-4551 or AskVA.gov) whenever they have questions or concerns about their benefit payments.
     
  • The Yellow Ribbon program is only available to accepted RWU Bristol students who are using their Post 9/11 GI Bill® and have 100% eligibility. 
  • Yellow Ribbon will only pay for tuition/fees that are not already covered by RWU aid and the Post 9/11 GI Bill. 
  • More information can be found on the VA Yellow Ribbon Website. 
  • RWU is a participant in the Yellow Ribbon Program and currently offers a total of 15 spots in the program at any one time; spots are not tied to individual majors; however, eligible students must be enrolled full time in a RWU Day School program.
  • The institution is required to approve spots to qualified applicants on a first come, first served basis (returning Yellow Ribbon recipients will automatically qualify for the next year if needed). However, when all spots are being utilized, a spot will not be available until one of the students using a spot has graduated or left the institution.
  • In order to be approved for the program, applicants must:
    • Already be officially accepted to RWU.
    • Submit an application to the Yellow Ribbon Program using the form below.
    • Submit a copy of a Certificate Eligibility showing 100% eligibility for the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill ®
    • Applicants cannot be approved until ALL of these conditions have been met; at this time, we are unable to approve an applicant unless an accompanying Certificate of Eligibility has been submitted. 
    • However, if an applicant has been admitted to RWU, a Yellow Ribbon Program application can be submitted without a Certificate of Eligibility, and the applicant will be placed on a waiting list. Once a valid Certificate of Eligibility is submitted, provided that a spot is available and all necessary, valid documents have been submitted a spot will then be approved.
  • RWU Yellow Ribbon Application 

If VA is late making a tuition payment to a GI Bill school, the school can’t prevent a GI Bill student from attending classes or accessing school facilities.

Schools may require students to provide proof of their GI Bill eligibility in the form of:

  • Certificate of Eligibility (COE) or
  • Certificate of Eligibility (COE) and additional criteria like an award letter or other documents the school specifies

In addition, schools can’t charge late fees or otherwise penalize GI Bill students if VA is late making a tuition and/or fees payment. This restriction on penalties doesn’t apply if the student owes additional fees to the school beyond the tuition and fees that VA pays. Students are protected from these penalties for up to 90 days from the beginning of the term.

Further information can be found on the VA website Policy Protecting Students from Late VA Payments.

Every semester students intending to use VA benefits must complete the Student Veteran Certification Form and return it to rwumilitary@rwu.edu. If the SCO doesn't receive this form, then the student will not be certified. 

  • How do I alert RWU that I would like to use VA benefits?
  • When is my enrollment certified? 
    • The SCO certifies your enrollment with the VA after the last day to drop a course without a W. Please see the Academic Calendar for that date.
  • I submitted a request for a refund, why have the funds not been released yet? 
    • One possible reason is that while the pending aid from the VA has been posted to your account, the actual money hasn't come in yet. This won't be sent by the VA until after the drop period ends and the SCO certifies your enrollment. To request an earlier enrollment certification due to financial hardship, please reach out to the SCO at rwumilitary@rwu.edu. 
  • I am planning to use a TA voucher, who do I contact? 
    • Active-duty service members can reach out to Lina Mejia at lmejia@rwu.edu for all requests and concerns. 
  • Can I use Yellow Ribbon? 
    • See the Yellow Ribbon information below. 

The SCO can be found in the Registrar's Office in the Administration building near the library for in person questions. 

Emails can be directed to rwumilitary@rwu.edu. 

Primary School Certifying Official: Brynna Turner, 401-254-3180

Backup School Certifying Official: Linda Gauvin, 401-254-3747