Voluntary Education Defense Department Policy

Federal law, Defense Department policy and policies specific to the branches of service govern military programs. Below are the DOD policies governing voluntary military education programs including tuition assistance, Montgomery GI Bill and the Post-9/11 GI Bill.

DOD Instruction 1322.19, “Voluntary Education Programs in Overseas Areas,” March 14, 2013, incorporating change 1, effective April 23, 2020 This instruction reissues DOD Instruction 1322.19 and sets policy, assigns duties and establishes consistent procedures for providing voluntary education programs and services to service members overseas, whether assigned to a permanent or contingency location.

DOD Instruction 1322.25, “Voluntary Education Programs,” March 15, 2011, incorporating change 4, effective April 2, 2020  This instruction updates DOD Instruction 1322.25 to clarify the rules and responsibilities for running voluntary education programs in DOD. It outlines tuition assistance eligibility, requires educational institutions to sign agreements with DOD and sets standards for transparency and fairness in the way schools attract service members and their families as students. Additionally, it introduces procedures to review and adjust tuition assistance annually, provides service members with educational transcripts and establishes a complaint system for education-related issues. It also sets up the Interservice Voluntary Education Board.