Your Military Experience Could Earn You College Credits

Good news for those with military experience who are pursuing a college degree – service in the U.S. Armed Forces can earn you academic credits, saving tuition dollars and time.

A number of schools, including many accredited, online universities, give military students credit towards a degree based on their training, coursework, and occupational specialty. By applying your military experience, you could save as much as $600 and five months on a typical three-credit college course.

College Credit for Your Military Service

The American Council on Education (ACE), created in 1942 to recognize the educational value of military training and experience, continuously evaluates military schools, correspondence courses and occupations to accurately assess the amount and level of academic credit that each should be awarded. Through ACE, you can receive credit for the majority of the training you have received, including Basic Training.

To claim the credits you have earned, you must first request a transcript from your military service branch, each which has its own recording system:
• The Army uses the AARTS system, available to enlisted soldiers only, which automatically retrieves your scholastic credits from military training and standardized tests.
• The Navy and Marine Corps both use the SMART system which routinely captures your training, experience and test scores.
• For those serving in the Air Forces, the Community College of the Air Force (CCAF) automatically records your training, experience and test scores. Transcript information can be accessed using the CCAF web site.
• To receive a transcript from the Coast Guard, each service member must submit documentation of their training to the Coast Guard Institute (CGI), along with an enrollment form.
• Military Veterans are eligible to use their former service branches transcript program under most circumstances. However, if you don’t quality for the AARTS, SMART, CCAF or CGI systems, you will need to complete a DD-295 form and provide your DD-214 Discharge Document to receive credit.

An education is beneficial to your military career and civilian future. Use your military tuition assistance, earn college credits for your valuable military experience and pursue your education at an online university from bases worldwide.

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   August 11, 2009 at 8:32 pm

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