Provided here are summaries of and links to Department of Defense Voluntary Education policy and legislation. These policy documents are in Adobe Acrobat PDF format and require Acrobat Reader 4.0 or later. A free copy of Acrobat Reader can be downloaded for any of several computer operating systems from the Adobe Acrobat Reader Web page.

Social Compact

The Social Compact lays out a 20-year strategic plan for ensuring that the Department of Defense's performance goals for quality of life keep pace with the changing expectations of the American workforce and address the needs of the two-thirds of military families living off the installation as well as the Reserve Components. It describes the intricate fabric of support that must exist to support the military community while giving even greater focus to the most pressing quality of life issues.

Legislation

Title 10 United States Code (USC) §2005, "Advanced Education Assistance: Active Duty Agreement," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides the branches of Service the authority to require, as a condition to providing educational assistance (such as paying for off-duty education expenses), that Service members agree to remain on active duty for a period of time.

Title 10 USC §2007, "Payment of Tuition Assistance for Off-Duty Training or Education," January 3, 2007  This legislation authorizes the Department of Defense (DoD) to pay all or a portion of a service member's tuition or other expenses related to education or training completed during the Service member's off-duty periods.

Title 10 USC Chapter 106A, "Educational Assistance for Persons Enlisting for Active Duty," 3 January 2007  This legislation allows branches of Service to establish an educational assistance program for Service members enlisting or reenlisting.  This chapter of Title 10 contains the following nine sections: establishment of the program (10 USC §2141), eligibility requirements (10 USC §2142), amount of the benefit (10 USC §2143), subsistence allowance (10 USC §2144), adjustments to the amount of benefit and subsistence allowance (10 USC §2145), right to lump sum payment in lieu of educational assistance (10 USC §2146), right to transfer entitlement to spouse or dependent children (10 USC §2147), duration of entitlement (10 USC §2148), and applications for educational assistance (10 USC §2149).

Title 10 USC §2171, "Education Loan Repayment Program: Enlisted Members on Active Duty in Specified Military Specialties," January 3, 2007  This legislation allows the branches of Service to repay particular types of education loans in exchange for additional years of service in the military for enlisted Service members in certain specialties.

Title 10 USC §2173, "Education Loan Repayment Program: Commissioned Officers in Specified Health Professions," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides the Services the authority to repay education loans for health professionals in exchange for additional years of service in the military.

Title 10 USC Chapter 110, "Educational Assistance for Members Held as Captives and their Dependents," January 3, 2007 This legislation directs the branches of Service to pay education expenses for a dependent of a service member held in captive status or for the Service member held in captive status upon release.  This chapter contains the following five sections: definitions (10 USC §2181), educational assistance to dependents of captive (10 USC §2182), educational assistance to former captives (10 USC §2183), termination of assistance (10 USC §2184), and a section requiring that programs under this Chapter be consistent with programs administered by the Department of Veterans Affairs (10 USC §2185).

Title 10 USC Chapter 1606, "Educational Assistance for Members of the Selected Reserve," January 3, 2007  This legislation directs the branches of Service to establish an educational assistance program for members of the Selected Reserve and Ready Reserve who agree to remain members of the Selected Reserve for a period of not less than six years.  This chapter of Title 10 contains the following seven sections: establishment and amount of the program (10 USC §16131), eligibility requirements (10 USC §16132), time limitation for use of entitlement (10 USC §16133), termination of assistance (10 USC §16134), failure to participate satisfactorily and penalties (10 USC §16135), administration of the program (10 USC §16136), and the requirement for a biennial report to Congress (10 USC §16137).

Title 10 USC Chapter 1607, "Educational Assistance for Reserve Component Members Supporting Contingency Operations and Certain Other Operations," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides educational assistance to members of the Reserve Component called or ordered to active service in response to a war or national emergency declared by the President or Congress.  This chapter of Title 10 contains the following six sections: purpose (10 USC §16161), educational assistance program (10 USC §16162), eligibility (10 USC §16163), time limitation for use of entitlement (10 USC §16164), termination of assistance (10 USC §16165), and administration of program (10 USC §16166).

Title 10 USC §16301, "Education Loan Repayment Program: Enlisted Members of Selected Reserve with Critical Specialties," January 3, 2007  This legislation allows branches of Service to repay education loans for enlisted members of the Selected Reserve with certain military specialties in exchange for additional years of service in the military.

Title 10 USC §16302, "Education Loan Repayment Program: Health Professions Officers Serving in Selected Reserve with Wartime Critical Medical Skill Shortages," January 3, 2007  This legislation allows the branches of Service to repay education loans for officers in the Selected Reserve in a health profession that the Secretary of Defense has determined to be needed critically in order to meet identified wartime combat medical skill shortages in exchange for additional years of service in the military.

Title 38 USC Chapter 30, "All-Volunteer Force Education Assistance Program," January 3, 2007 This legislation details the educational assistance entitlement available to qualified veterans of the military. 

Title 38 USC Chapter 32, "Post-Vietnam Era Veterans' Educational Assistance," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides a matching savings program for educational assistance for qualified veterans who entered the military after 31 December 1976 and before 1 July 1985. 

Title 38 USC Chapter 34, "Veterans' Educational Assistance," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides educational assistance to veterans serving on active duty after 31 January 1955 and before 1 January 1977.

Title 38 USC Chapter 35, "Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance," January 3, 2007  This legislation provides education opportunities to children whose education would otherwise be impeded or interrupted by reason of the disability or death of a parent from a disease of injury incurred or aggravated as a result of service in the military.

Department of Defense Policy

DoD Instruction 1322.06, "Fellowships, Scholarships, Training With Industry (TWI), and Grants for DoD Personnel," November 15, 2007  This Instruction establishes policy and assigns responsibilities regarding when DoD personnel may accept fellowships, scholarships, TWI opportunities, or grants from corporations, foundations, funds, or education institutions organized and operated for scientific, literary, or educational purposes.

DoD Directive 1322.08E, "Voluntary Education Programs for Military Personnel," January 3, 2005, certified as current April 23, 2007  This Directive updates policy that establishes voluntary education programs in each of the branches of Service and states that the amount of monetary support provided to Service members as tuition assistance shall be uniform across the Services.

DoD Instruction 1322.9, "Voluntary Education Programs for Military Personnel-Management System," October 16, 1995  This Instruction implements policy under DoD Directive 1322.8 and updates responsibilities and procedures for collecting information about the voluntary education programs for military personnel. 

DoD Directive 1322.10, "Policy on Graduate Education for Military Officers," April 29, 2008  This Directive grants authority to the Services to fund graduate education for their military officers to ensure that officer duty-assignment positions requiring graduate degrees are filled.

DoD Directive 1322.12, "Funded Legal Education," April 12, 2004, certified as current April 23, 2007  This Directive updates policy allowing the military Services to detail a select group (no more than twenty-five) of commissioned officers annually to accredited law schools for the purpose of obtaining law degrees and returning subsequently to their military Services as career judge advocate officers.

DoD Directive 1322.16, "Montgomery G.I. Bill Program," June 18, 2002  This Directive updates policy stating that eligible individuals who do not decline the Montgomery G.I. Bill Program shall be entitled to educational assistance.

DoD Instruction 1322.17, "Montgomery G.I. Bill - Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR)," November 29, 1999  This Instruction updates policy, responsibilities, and procedures to incorporate changes from amendments to Chapter 1606 of Title 10, United States Code establishing a program for educational assistance to members of the Selected Reserve.

DoD Instruction 1322.19, "Voluntary Education Programs in Overseas Areas," May 9, 1988  This Instruction prescribes uniform policies and assigns responsibilities for the branches of Service to avoid duplication of post-secondary education offerings in overseas locations.

DoD Instruction 1322.25, "Voluntary Education Programs," March 15, 2011  This Instruction implements policy, assigns responsibilities, and prescribes procedures for the operation of voluntary education programs in DoD and establishes the Interservice Voluntary Education Working Group.

Office of the Under Secretary of Defense for Personnel and Readiness (USD(P&R)) Memorandum, “Post-9/11 GI Bill,” June 22, 2009 This directive-type memorandum establishes policy, assigns responsibilities, and prescribes procedures for carrying out the Post-9/11 GI Bill; establishes policy for use of supplemental education assistance for members with critical skills or specialties; and establishes policy for authorizing transferability of education benefits.

Release 04.11.12.1