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Tuition Assistance

Tuition Assistance (TA) is the term used for financial aid given by military branches to active duty and reserve service members for college courses. Service members should speak with their Educational Services Officer (ESO) or counselor within their military service prior to enrolling at the college.

TA only covers the cost of tuition, regardless of which military branch you serve in. Students are responsible for paying for all associated fees (Institutional Fee, Student Activity Fee, and Auxiliary Capital Fee). TA must be approved by your command 14 days prior to the first day of class.

Steps for Using Tuition Assistance at RCC:

  1. Service members should speak with their Educational Services Officer (ESO) or counselor within the military service prior to enrolling at the college.
  2. Apply for Tuition Assistance (TA) based on your military branch specific process: Note Tuition Assistance pays tuition only; students are responsible to pay fees by tuition deadline.
  3. Apply for Financial Aid using school code 009160 (Financial Aid can be used to charge your books and/or pay fees.)
  4. Consult with a College Navigator for curriculum and/or class schedule. Bring unofficial transcripts for unofficial evaluation OR consult a VA School Certifying Official at veterans@rappahannock.edu.

Dropping or Withdrawing with Tuition Assistance

When a student using TA drops a course, they receive a 100% refund of tuition and fees. Please see the college academic calendar (link to academic calendar) for add/drop dates for each semester and session. When a student officially withdraws from a course, the date of withdrawal will be used as the last date of attendance in order to calculate the amount of TA the student is eligible to receive. An unofficial withdrawal occurs when a student never attends, stops attending, or stops participating in a course.

When using TA, students must maintain a grade-level of C or higher for undergraduate courses, a pass for pass/fail courses. If a student is not able to maintain the required grade, they are responsible to pay back the amount of the class.

Veterans Benefits and Standards of Progress
Students using veteran’s educational benefits must enroll only in Veterans’ Administration approved curricula and may only take required prerequisites and courses for the curriculum in which they are officially enrolled. All courses must be taken for credit. Audited courses cannot be taken using VA benefits. Students who take courses which are not required by the curriculum in which they are enrolled must reimburse the Veteran’s Administration for benefits received for those courses. Students inquiring about using Veterans Benefits should contact the Financial Aid and Veterans Affairs Officer at RCC to ensure appropriate paperwork has been received.

A curriculum change can be made if there will be no significant loss of credit occurs.

To remain eligible for VA educational benefits, students must maintain satisfactory academic progress. A student who is placed on academic suspension or dismissal will be reported to the VA as making unsatisfactory progress. RCC grading policies will be used to determine whether veterans are maintaining satisfactory progress. The Veterans Affairs Office will also report to the Veterans Administration as soon as possible any change in the status of veterans, whether that be a change of curriculum, reduction or increase in course load or withdrawal.