Office of Veteran Student Success

Chapter 30 – Montgomery GI Bill^®

Benefit provides a monthly educational assistance allowance for up to 36 months. Additional information and payment rates can be found on above link.

Chapter 31 - Veterans Readiness and Employment

Benefit provides 100% of tuition, fees & books to qualified veterans with an established service-connected disability. Benefit includes a monthly allowance for living expenses. Additional information and payment rates can be found on above link.

Chapter 33 – Post 9/11^®

The benefit provides qualified veterans and dependents (with transferred entitlement) up to 36 months of educational assistance. Beginning fall 2025, students at the 100% benefit level will receive up to $29,920.95 per academic year toward tuition/fees and may qualify for Yellow Ribbon benefits; students with less than 100% benefit will receive their prorated benefit level of the $29,920.95. For students beginning fall 2025, the benefit amount will be increasing to (TBD) with the same eligibility parameters. In addition, students are eligible for a book stipend up to $1,000 and a monthly housing allowance. Additional information and housing allowance rates can be found on above link.

Yellow Ribbon Program

RIT is proud to be a partner with the US Department of Veteran Affairs in administering the Yellow Ribbon program, providing qualified veterans and dependents 100% tuition coverage per standard academic year for Undergraduate and Graduate degree programs.*  Eligible students must be approved for Post 9/11 benefits at the 100% tier

Yellow Ribbon Contribution: RIT will contribute up to an additional $16,144 per academic year for Undergraduate students and the VA will match dollar for dollar. These combined contributions, in addition to the $29,920.95 Post 9/11 benefit, provide students with up to $62,208.95 in funding towards RIT tuition, per academic year. Total Contributions cannot exceed the cost of tuition.

*Exception applies to students within RIT’s EMBA programs. Yellow Ribbon funding can be utilized but tuition coverage will vary. Contact Veteran Services Office for details.

Chapter 35 – Dependents’ Education Assistance (DEA)

Benefit provides monthly educational assistance to eligible dependents of certain veterans for up to 36 months. Additional information and payment rates can be found on above link.

Chapter 1606 – Montgomery GI Bill®: Selected Reserve

Benefit provides a monthly educational assistance allowance for up to 36 months. Additional information and payment rates can be found on above link.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d09fUIuxM

All students applying to use military funding at RIT should already possess the VA Certificate of Eligibility (COE) confirming benefits. If you do not have this form, you will need to complete the VON APP (VA application for benefits) found on the VA website.  Once you have the Certificate of Eligibility and have been admitted to RIT, please scan/email/ or drop-off the required documents to the Office of Veteran Student Success.

If you are a Veteran, Service member, Active Duty Soldier, Dependent or Spouse using Chapters 30, 31, 35, 1606 or Post 9/11® AND are a new student at RIT the following documents must be submitted before benefits can be administered:

• Military & Veteran Services Student Benefit Worksheet
  • 2024 – 2025 Academic Year - closed
    • 2025-2026 RIT VA Benefit Worksheet
• VA Certificate of Eligibility or Award Letter
• Veterans DD214 (required by Veterans only)
• Change of Place of Training VA Form 22-1995 or 22-5495 (only required if benefits have been used at an institution prior to attending RIT)

If you received military benefits at RIT during the 2025-2026 academic year, the following documents must be submitted to the Veterans Services Office at RIT to ensure continuation of benefits in the 2026-2027 academic year:

• Military & Veteran Services Student Benefit Worksheet
  • 2026-2027 VA Benefits Worksheet (in development: please email vets@rit.edu to state you would like to use benefits for Fall 2026)
• Confirmation of remaining months of entitlement
  • Veterans and Dependents must provide a recent VA Certificate of Eligibility/award letter.  This will come in the mail 30 days after you've applied for your benefit or can be downloaded on va.gov. Once on this page, navigate to the lower portion of the page and follow the link to Download your VA Education Letter.  You'll need an ID.me or Login.gov account to access your account.

The RIT Helen and Frederick Blaessig Annual Memorial Scholarship Award was established by Monroe County Powers Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Chapter 15 in honor of Frederick Blaessig, a 1941 RIT graduate.

A deserving disabled American veteran, or the spouse, child, or grandchild of a disabled American veteran will be selected annually in May for payment in the following year. The Award recipient will be selected based on demonstrated Academic Excellence and Financial need. Candidates for this award must be registered, matriculated students (full-time or part-time) at the Rochester Institute of Technology during the year the award is paid. The application form can be downloaded here. Applications will be accepted between November 15th, 2023 and April 15th, 2024

To be considered for the scholarship, please submit the completed form and supporting documents to the Office of Financial Aid & Scholarships.

Veteran and active duty service members are eligible for an application fee waiver. After you submit your application the waiver will be applied automatically based on the military status.

More information on third party scholarships can be found on Student Veteran’s Guide to College Success.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U3d09fUIuxM

• http://www.va.gov/
• GI Bill hotline: 1-888-442-4551
• Submit a Question to the VA

We recognize that transitioning from the military life to the life of a college student can present new challenges. We are committed to helping you meet these challenges and to succeed at RIT. RIT offers a wide array of excellent academic and personal support services that can be accessed directly. Students looking to use VA benefits for tutorial services or VA work study will be well advised to check with our office first.

Academic Support Services:

Whether you need help with the content of a class, or you need help figuring out the best ways to take notes, study, or manage your time to get all your work well done, RIT has people dedicated to helping you. You can receive help individually, in groups, one time only, or all semester long. There are multiple options! Here are some of the places where you may find the help you need:

• The Academic Support Center offers help to students in content areas (such as math) and with the general skills needed to be a successful student.
• The Bates and Sol Study Centers offers free drop-in math and physics tutoring.

Personal Counseling and Support Services:

RIT’s Counseling Center provides personal counseling, career counseling, group counseling, and psychological and vocational assessments. Although there is no limit on the number of sessions a student may have through the Center, it recognizes that student veterans can experience difficulties resulting from their military life, which can fall outside its expertise. RIT’s Counseling Center is able to refer student veterans to local agencies specializing in veterans’ issues:

• The Veterans Outreach Center, which is not affiliated with the VA
• The Rochester Vet Center
• Rochester VA Outpatient Clinic

RIT strives to foster an educational environment in which women can be personally, academically, and professionally successful. Programming and educational resources related to women’s leadership, gender-based issues, and healthy relationships will be coordinated by the Women, Gender, and Sexuality Resource Center in Campus Life.

Tutorial assistance helps the student pay for necessary tutoring and is a supplement to the student’s regular education benefit. Tutorial assistance is available if you are receiving VA educational assistance at the half-time or greater rate and have a deficiency in a subject making tutoring necessary. For additional information, including an overview and application form, please review VA - Tutorial Assistance.

RIT participates in the Principles of Excellence program, which sets guidelines that universities receiving federal funding for some military and veterans educational benefits programs. 

Based on these guidelines, active duty military, veterans and their dependents can expect RIT to:

• Give you a written personal summary of the total cost of your educational program, including:
  • The costs covered by your benefits.
  • The financial aid you may qualify for.
  • Your expected student-loan debt after you graduate.
  • Other information to help you compare aid packages offered by different schools.
• Give you an educational plan with a timeline showing how and when you can fulfill everything required for you to graduate.
• Assign you a point of contact who will give you ongoing academic and financial advice (including access to disability counseling).
• Allow for you to be gone for both long and short periods of time due to service obligations (service you must fulfill) for active-duty service members and Reservists.
• Make sure all new programs are accredited (officially approved) before enrolling students.
• Make sure their refund policies follow Title IV rules, which guide federal student financial aid programs.
• Not use fraudulent (deceitful) and aggressive methods of recruiting.

If you are a parent or spouse wanting to transfer your military benefits, utilize the following VA and DoD links to learn more about the process.

VA - Transfer of Post-9/11 GI-Bill® Benefits to Dependents (TEB)

DoD - GI Bill® Transferability

Military Tuition Assistance at RIT

Tuition Assistance benefits are a way for the military services to provide education benefits to service members on active duty and, when authorized by the applicable service, members of the National Guard and Reserve. Tuition Assistance benefits are administered by each branch of service. Each branch determines its own award amounts, eligibility requirements, restrictions, deadlines, and application process.

Service-specific Tuition Assistance information and application procedures can be found through the following military branches:

• Air Force, Air Force Reserve, and Air National Guard
• Army, Army Reserve, and Army National Guard
• Coast Guard
• Navy
• Marine Corps and Marine Corps Reserve
• Space Force

Before enrolling at Rochester Institute of Technology, all service members should contact their military service Educational Services Officer (ESO), education counselor, or unit/base education office for information about service-specific benefits and requirements.

Applying for Tuition Assistance at RIT

Start your Tuition Assistance request before the beginning of each semester. Each service has specific requirements concerning how many days before the semester or course start date a TA request must be submitted.

If this is your first time using TA, your service may also require you to receive command approval and complete training concerning the TA application process and program requirements.

In general, you will need to complete the following steps:

1. Obtain approval from your commander or military service to use Tuition Assistance.
2. Complete your TA request through your service-specific voluntary education portal:
   • ArmyIgnitED
   • Air Force Virtual Education Center
   • MyNavy Education
   • WebTA or the applicable service portal
3. Select Rochester Institute of Technology as your academic institution.
4. Confirm that you selected the correct RIT location and academic program.
5. Enter the requested course, credit-hour, tuition, and academic-term information.
6. Submit the completed TA request to your military service.
7. Monitor your service portal for approval. If approval is not received in a timely manner, contact your unit or base education office to ask about the status of the request.

8. Once your service approves the TA request, submit the approved Tuition Assistance authorization to RIT’s Office of Student Financial Services at:

   Email: asksfs@rit.edu
   Phone: 585-475-6186
   Mailing address:
   Rochester Institute of Technology
   Student Financial Services
   25 Lomb Memorial Drive
   Rochester, NY 14623-5603

The approved TA authorization should be submitted as soon as possible so that the anticipated payment can be applied to the student’s account. RIT’s published instructions direct students to submit approved TA requests to Student Financial Services at asksfs@rit.edu. RIT Office of Veteran Student Success

TA Billing and Student Schedule Changes

Once RIT receives and processes the approved TA authorization, the anticipated Tuition Assistance payment will be reflected on the student’s account. The student remains responsible for any tuition, fees, or other charges not covered by Tuition Assistance.

If a student drops, withdraws from, or stops attending a course for which TA was authorized, the student should immediately notify RIT Student Financial Services. RIT may need to:

• Notify the appropriate military service or TA program manager
• Adjust the amount billed to the military service
• Return unearned TA funds
• Adjust the student’s RIT account
• Bill the student for any resulting balance

Failure to report schedule changes or resolve a resulting balance may lead to late fees, collection activity, or restrictions on the student’s account.

Return of Unearned Tuition Assistance

In accordance with the Department of Defense Tuition Assistance Program Memorandum of Understanding, RIT returns unearned TA funds to the appropriate military service on a proportional basis through at least the 60% point of the period for which the funds were provided.

The amount returned is based on the portion of the course or enrollment period the student did not complete.

• Before or at the 60% completion point, RIT calculates and returns the unearned portion of TA to the military service.
• After the student completes more than 60% of the course or enrollment period, the TA is generally considered earned, and no TA funds are returned under the DoD proportional-return calculation.
• Returning TA funds may create a balance on the student’s RIT account.
• The student is responsible for paying any balance remaining after RIT returns the unearned TA funds to the military service.

The DoD TA return calculation is separate from RIT’s standard tuition-refund or tuition-adjustment schedule. Therefore, the amount RIT returns to the military service may differ from the tuition adjustment credited to the student’s account. RIT Tuition Refund/Adjustment Policy

When a service member stops attending because of a military service obligation, RIT states that it will work with the affected service member to identify solutions that will not result in student debt for the returned portion of TA.

Military Withdrawal or Leave

Service members who must withdraw or take a leave of absence because of military orders or another service obligation should contact the following offices immediately:

• Their academic advisor
• RIT Student Financial Services
• RIT Registrar
• RIT Office of Veteran Student Success

Students should provide copies of applicable military orders or supporting documentation. RIT will review the student’s circumstances, applicable academic policies, tuition adjustments, and required return of military funding.

Degree Plans

Some military services require a student to submit an official degree plan before approving Tuition Assistance.

RIT students who need a degree plan should contact their academic advisor or academic department. The advisor can help the student obtain documentation showing:

• The student’s degree program
• Completed requirements
• Remaining degree requirements
• Courses applicable to the student’s program
• Expected degree-completion timeline

Students may also review their academic requirements and degree progress through RIT’s student information system. The military service may require the degree plan to be signed or approved by an RIT academic official.

Helpful RIT Contacts

Student Financial Services

Contact Student Financial Services for questions about:

• Submitting TA authorizations
• TA payments
• Student billing
• Refunds and credit balances
• Balances created by returned TA funds

Phone: 585-475-6186
Email: asksfs@rit.edu
Address: 25 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623-5603

Office of Veteran Student Success

Contact the Office of Veteran Student Success for general assistance with military and veteran education benefits, campus resources, and unresolved TA issues.

Location: Global Village, Building 400, Room 2040
Address: 162 Lomb Memorial Drive, Rochester, NY 14623-5608
Phone: 585-475-6723
General veterans-services contact: vets@rit.edu
Website: RIT Office of Veteran Student Success

Financial Aid and Scholarships

Phone: 585-475-2186
Email: ritaid@rit.edu

TA Questions and Compliance Issues

Billing, Payments, and Refunds

Students with questions about TA billing, returned funds, refunds, or their student account should contact RIT Student Financial Services:

Phone: 585-475-6186
Email: asksfs@rit.edu

General TA Assistance

Students who need assistance navigating the TA process should contact the RIT Office of Veteran Student Success:

Phone: 585-475-6723
Email: vets@rit.edu

DoD MOU Compliance Concerns

Students who want to report a Tuition Assistance or DoD Memorandum of Understanding compliance concern should contact the Office of Veteran Student Success for referral to RIT’s designated DoD MOU point of contact.

As per 34 C.F.R. § 668.18, RIT will readmit service members with the same academic status they had when last attending the school or accepted for admission to the school due to military service.   

The student must notify the school of his military service and intention to return to school as follows:

Notification of military service. The student (or an appropriate officer of the armed forces or official of the Department of Defense) must give oral or written notice of such service to the school as far in advance as is reasonable under the circumstances. This notice does not have to indicate whether the student intends to return to the school and may not be subject to any rule of timeliness. (Timeliness must be determined by the facts in each case.) Alternatively, at the time of readmission, the student may submit an attestation of military service that necessitated his absence from school. No notice is required if precluded by military necessity, such as service in operations that are classified or would be compromised by such notice.

Notification of intent to return to school. The student must also give oral or written notice of her intent to return to the school within three years after the completion of the period of service. A student who is hospitalized or convalescing due to an illness or injury incurred or aggravated during the performance of service must notify the school within two years after the end of the period needed for recovery from the illness or injury. A student who fails to apply for readmission within these periods does not automatically forfeit eligibility for readmission but is subject to the school’s established leave of absence policy and general practices.

Notification can be provided to the Registrar and/or the Office of Veteran Student Success.

Students will be readmitted to the same program unless that program is no longer offered and will be enrolled at the same level previously completed unless the requirements of a new program require a change.

Please note that the cumulative length of all your military absences from the institution cannot exceed five years.

To learn more about using your GI Bill benefits to cover the cost of exams, approved exams, and the process to submit a reimbursement request review VA – Licensing & Certification .

This website can be utilized to request military transcripts be sent to RIT.

All veterans using chapters 30, 1606, or 1607 must verify their enrollment each month to the VA in order to receive payment for that month. This monthly verification can be done by one of the two following ways:

1. Phone: 1-877-823-2378
2. Internet: Log into the program called WAVE (Web Automated Verification of Enrollment)

RIT offers many different housing options to student veterans both on and off campus. In addition, Margaret’s House, a Child Care Center, is located right on the RIT campus.

On campus housing: For information on housing on RIT’s campus, please go to our RIT Housing website.

Off campus housing: There are a lot of options near RIT. For help regarding off-campus housing, visit our Student Affairs website.

Daycare:  Children between the ages of 8 weeks and kindergarten can attend Margaret’s House Child Care Center on campus. Financial aid is available. Children in kindergarten through grade three can also attend Margaret’s House after school hours, on their days off, and in the summer.

School District: RIT is located in the Rush-Henrietta School District, which provides bus transportation. Its excellent high school is rated in the top 1,000 high schools in the U.S. by Newsweek Magazine (2008).

The Veterans Upward Bound (VUB) Program provides opportunity for veterans of all ages to gain access to information about college and career exploration and acquire academic skills required for entry into post-secondary training. Services are offered continuously throughout the year and include short-term remedial coursework in math and English, workshops, self-paced computer tutorials, individualized tutoring and classroom-based instruction. We also offer one-on-one support to help participants transition and succeed at the institution of their choice, which may be a skills center, vocational/trade school, community college and/or university. We understand that not all people have the same needs and the RIT VUB program is designed to meet the unique needs and interests of each veteran admitted to the program.

All VUB classes and supplies are FREE to qualified veterans. This is a TRiO Program, federally funded through a grant from the U.S. Department of Education.

This program is funded to serve 125 participants each year from 9 counties within a 90 mile radius of Rochester, NY which include: Genesee, Livingston, Monroe, Ontario, Orleans, Seneca, Wayne, Wyoming and Yates.

For questions, eligibility requirements and to apply, contact Amy Ortiz, Veterans Upward Bound Director at 585-475-5495 or by email at ajoddi@rit.edu