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Has anyone used the Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve?


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I am trying to use the GI bill for flight training. I found out that I am only eligible for the GI Bill Selected Reserve; but no one, including the VA, has been able to tell me how much it will cover for flight training.

 

This table is the closest thing to an answer I have found so far:

http://www.benefits.va.gov/GIBILL/resources/benefits_resources/rates/ch1606/ch1606rates100115.aspbut I still can't figure out what it is telling me.

 

I have 6 years of active drilling on Reserve status during which I have 19 months of active duty for training. (No other active duty time.)

 

Any insight is appreciated.

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From what I gathered when you signed up for a six year term you were awarded 36 months of educational benefits. Under the Montgomery Bill you receive 60% of the training cost reimbursed to you, though I think there is a monetary limit. So if your working on your instrument license and it costs $20,000, you will be reimbursed $12,000. Keep in mind it only kicks in after you get your private license. In this pamphlet I'm linking to in this post it says you can be eligible for the Active Duty Montgomery after 2 years of service. Here's a link. http://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill/docs/pamphlets/ch1606_pamphlet.pdf

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So, in short, the Selected Reserve GI Bill kind of sucks. There's no 60% or 40% like the post 9-11. The Reserve GI bill will basically give you a tiny stipend every month that you are in training, school, etc. If you were say, a full time student, then you would qualify for about $367 per month that you are in the training. It doesn't cover tuition, it doesn't cover books, it really is kind of a raw deal compared to the military's other education benefits. When stacked with say a guard or reserve tuition assistance program, it levels out to a decent amount. I'm not sure how much it would cover for flight training, but I can tell you it wouldn't be more than $367 a month. You can go here to read more about it http://www.military.com/education/gi-bill/selected-reserve-gi-bill-payment-rates.html.

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According to that rate there, it says 60%, which to me doesn't actually seem like a bad deal. It still sucks for a university though. Keep in mind, if you ever decide to go active duty (or deploy), the time you used the selected reserve GI Bill will be deducted for any post 9-11 benefits you may qualify for in the future. That one bit me hard as I used the full 36 months, and now I'm active duty, so I can only apply for a 12 month extension of post 9-11 benefits, and not the full rate for 36 months.

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Amount awarded per month multiplied by the number of months equals total amount of reimbursement available. Spend your money up front and be reimbursed 60% of approved costs until you reach your reimbursement limits. Ask the school about approved costs. For example at Bristow they charged me $265 per hour for an instrument ship (if I remember correctly) however the approved cost from the VA was $225 (again if I remember correctly, you get the point....) also fuel surcharge is not an approved cost, etc, etc. All in all I spent roughly $100 per hour for every hour I purchased under Chapter 1606 of the Montgomery GI Bill on top of the 40% of the deal that fell to me.

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