Tuition Assistance

We are excited you are considering using your military tuition assistance (TA) benefit at Washington University. Your best point of contact for information about financial resources is the financial aid advisor for the program in which you are interested.

The Department of Defense (DOD) offers TA to active duty, Guard and Reserve service members. Each branch has specific TA limits and application procedures. Prior to enrolling in the university, you must speak with your Educational Services Officer (ESO) or counselor within your respective service (typically located at your installation’s education center) and receive approval to use TA. Access the links below to learn more about your service’s specific TA program.

Washington University has signed the DOD Voluntary Education Partnership Memorandum of Understanding (DOD MOU), which is an agreement between the Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness and educational institutions. DOD policy requires educational institutions that wish to participate in the DOD TA Program to sign an MOU conveying the commitments and agreements between the educational institution and DOD prior to an educational institution receiving funds from a service’s TA program. The memorandum and a list of educational institutions that have signed can be found at Dodmou.com.

TA Points of Contact

Overall POC:
Military and Veteran Services
Initial point of contact and referral source for academic advising, admissions and recruitment, financial aid and career services
veterans@wustl.edu
(314) 935-2609
https://veterans.wustl.edu/

Academic Advising:
School advising representatives
https://wustl.edu/campus-experience/advising-and-career-assistance/

Admissions:
School admissions representatives
https://veterans.wustl.edu/students/prospective/admissions/

Billing:
Student Accounting
Student.Billing@wustl.edu
(314) 935-5274
https://financialservices.wustl.edu/student-accounts/

Career Services:
Career Center
careers@wustl.edu
(314) 935-5930
https://students.wustl.edu/career-center/

Disability Services:
Disability Resources
disabilityresources@wustl.edu
(314) 935-5970
https://students.wustl.edu/disability-resources/

Financial Aid:

Student Financial Services
Undergraduate students (except University College)
financial@wustl.edu
(888) 547-6670
https://sfs.wustl.edu/pages/default.aspx

School financial aid representatives
University College, graduate and professional students
https://sfs.wustl.edu/newlyadmitted/Pages/Graduate-Students.aspx

Steps for Using Your Military TA

  1. Receive approval from your Education Services Officer (ESO) or education counselor. Do not enroll in courses until you have this approval.
  2. Meet with your academic advisor and enroll in the university.
  3. Student Accounting will bill your military branch through its education services portal.
  4. Contact your ESO and Student Accounting with questions.

Military TA Top-Up Program

Using Top-Up benefits may be an option if you plan to use TA to complete a degree program while on active duty and don’t plan to continue your education after service. Top-Up can also be helpful for just taking a few courses with TA while on active duty; then you can save most of your GI Bill benefits for after service to complete your education program.

Visit https://www.va.gov/education/about-gi-bill-benefits/how-to-use-benefits/tuition-assistance-top-up/ for additional information on Top-Up, visit the GI Bill Comparison Tool to assist you in determining the amount of benefit you may receive through the VA, and contact your VA School Certifying Official on how this may work for you.

Tuition Assistance Refund Policy

Refunds are granted to military students who are unable to complete the remainder of the academic term due to their military service.

Visit https://veterans.wustl.edu/students/policy-for-military-students/ to view the university’s Policy on Military Absences, Refunds and Readmission and the steps to initiate a refund.

Information to Assist in Your College Decision

The GI Bill Comparison Tool can assist you in learning about the VA benefit programs and comparing benefits by school.

The College Scorecard is a consumer planning tool and resource to assist prospective students and their families as they evaluate options in selecting a school. This tool is most useful for potential full-time undergraduate students.

The College Navigator is a consumer tool that provides school information about tuition and fees, retention and graduation rates, use of financial aid, student loan default rates, and features a cost calculator and school comparison tool. This tool is most useful for potential full-time students, but has limited information for graduate students.

The Paying for College webpage contains a tool that can be used by prospective students to compare detailed financial information for up to three schools at a time. This site also includes general information about financial aid and financial literacy.

The Financial Aid Shopping Sheet is a model financial aid award letter designed to simplify the information that prospective students receive about college costs and financial aid so they can easily compare institutions and make informed decisions about where they attend school. For a personalized Financial Aid Shopping Sheet, please contact the financial aid representative for the program in which you’re interested.

The designated point of contact for servicemembers is the Office of Military and Veteran Services. If you are receiving TA benefits and are seeking access to disability counseling, please contact Disability Resources.

Program Accreditation

Washington University is accredited by the Higher Learning Commission. Learn more about the university’s accreditation process and standards at https://provost.wustl.edu/assessment/.

The university’s professional schools are accredited by their respective professional associations that serve as federally-recognized external accrediting agencies. Learn more about these agencies at https://provost.wustl.edu/assessment/accreditors/. 

DOD Post-Secondary Education Complaint System

A new DoD Postsecondary Education Complaint System (PECS) landing page has been implemented and provides pertinent information concerning the PECS complaint process, as well as access to the PECS intake form. If you or your family member receives tuition assistance or is a Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Scholarship recipient, you are encouraged to submit feedback.

You may submit a complaint if your school is failing to follow the Principles of Excellence. This initiative is designed to empower you and your family members to report misleading or unfair actions by education institutions. Examples of education related issues may include, but are not limited to, misrepresentation or deceptive actions concerning multiple unsolicited phone calls or emails used as a high-pressure recruitment tactic, false representation about degree programs, misleading statements regarding accreditation or promoting costly private or institutional loans.