Getting Started

Here are the recommended steps to utilize your VA benefit as efficiently as possible:

  1. Review the and determine which educational benefits (programs/chapter) you are eligible for.
  2. Apply for admission and get admitted to Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech. Note: you may only receive VA benefits for two terms without being fully-admitted to Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech (i.e. a non-degree student).
  3. Complete for education benefits.
  4. Submit a Certificate of Eligibility (sent via mail once your VA application has been processed) to the campus-specific School Certifying Official.

Transfer Students

If you are transferring from another higher education institution with 36 credits or more and are a veteran, welcome! Here are some steps to assist in the transfer process:

  • Send all transcripts to the Registrar’s Office (registrar@oit.edu). To include the military transcript or Joint Services Transcripts (JST), please request them from the JST website. Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech adheres to ACE-recommended guidelines for transfer credit evaluation. Military experience is currently not evaluated, but Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech can accept military credit or courses. You will receieve an individual evaluation specific to your major and circumstances.
  • As a transfer student, you can transfer and apply up to 75% of the degree from another institution and/or military credit. The remainder of the degree pursued must be completed with Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech. An evaluated education plan will be provided within 60 days after you have selected a degree program and all required official transcripts have been received.

Chapter 30 and 1606 students must verify enrollment monthly by Web Automated Verification of Enrollment, WAVE. This generates your VA payment.

Note: Check your Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech email regularly as this is our official means of communication. Remember-VA will only pay for courses that apply to your specific Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech program!

Policies & Procedures for Applying VA Benefits

  • Once you have submitted your , your VA School Certifying Official (SCO) for Klamath Falls, Online & Chemeketa Campuses Michelle Monteith michelle.monteith@oit.edu or for Portland-Metro Campus Kendal Marks kendal.marks@oit.edu  will report your enrollment to VA. Please remember that anytime you make a change to your class schedule (add, drop, withdrawal, or change modality) you must complete another . Also please keep in mind changes to your originally submitted certification request will delay your VA payment.
     
  • Your is due in to your SCO no later than the second Friday of the term.  If you do not complete/submit the by this date, you will be responsible for the late fee and interest charges that will be assessed to your balance on the 15th of the following month.
     
  • Week 3, after the add/drop period has closed, typically the second Friday of the term, your SCO will submit your credit count to the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech Business Office.
     
  • As soon as the Business Office processes the spreadsheet that has been submitted, they will supply your SCO with your tuition and fee amounts. Then your SCO will amend your certification and add-in the total amount of your term tuition and fees. This amount is not reduced by most scholarships, loans, or grants. It is, however, reduced by presidential scholarships or other Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech remissions.  
     
  • Tuition and fees benefits for Chapter 33 Post 9/11 and Chapter 31 are paid directly to the school in an amount not to exceed the maximum in-state tuition and fees at a public institution of higher education. They should pay to the student account between week 5 and 7 of the term. This timeline also includes the Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Veteran Dependent Tuition Waiver.
     
  • Individuals enrolled completely in distance learning courses (not including Chapter 30) will be eligible for a housing allowance equal to 50% of the national average of all Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH) rates.  If the student can take at least 1 resident credit that applies to their degree, their housing payment will be based on the zip code of the facility the student is attending.
     
  • BAH benefits paid directly to the student should arrive at approximately the beginning of the month following the month you earned it. For example, if the term starts in January, your first benefit payment is expected to arrive the beginning of February.
     
  • You will receive a hold on your account for an unpaid balance while we wait for VA to remit your payment or for the OVDTW to be applied to your student account.  Please do not let this worry you. We are not going to kick you out; we know you are waiting for a VA payment, but our automated systems that places the hold, does not.
     
  • You do have the option of setting up a payment plan if your total tuition and fees will not be covered by VA. Please contact cashier@oit.edu for more information.
     
  • You will not be charged any late fees or interest on your balance due while we wait for VA to pay. They will get assessed but once we receive VA payment or your OVFTW has been applied, those will be reversed. We understand that this process takes time to be completed on the VA’s end, and you will not be penalized for their processing times. However, if you do not turn in your on time, by the second Friday of the term,  you will be responsible for the late fee and interest charges applied to your account.

Benefit payments are made directly to students (with the exception of Chapter 33 tuition payment), unless advance payment is requested (see Advance Payment section). The payment is made to the student for the number of days the student is certified for the month. If a student is certified for a whole month, the full monthly benefit is paid. If the student is only certified for part of the month, the benefit is prorated as follows:

VA uses a 30-day month. Divide the monthly rate by 30 to get the daily rate. If a student is certified from the 1st through the 15th, the student is certified 15 days and is entitled to 15/30ths of the full monthly benefit. Example: If the monthly benefit is $100.00 and the student is certified 1/1/04 through 1/15/04, the student is entitled to $50.00 ($3.33 per day for 15 days). If the student is certified 1/16/04 through 1/31/04, the student is entitled to $50.00 ($3.33 per day for 15 days). If the student is certified 1/1/04 through 1/31/04, the student is entitled to $100.00 (a full months benefit). Remember, VA uses a 30-day month: 1/16 through 1/30 (or 1/31) pays is 15 days and 2/16 through 2/28 (or 2/29) is 15 days. The month rounds out to 30 days.

Standard benefit rates are described in the monthly rates section. An additional kicker may be paid to some chapter 30 and chapter 1606 students. If a student paid for part of a month is subsequently certified for the next quarter, VA will automatically pay the break between the quarters if interval pay (break pay) can be paid.

It is Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech's policy that we will not impose any penalty, including the assessment of late fees, the denial of access to classes, libraries, or other institutional facilities, or the requirement that an individual borrow additional funds because of the individual's inability to meet his or her financial obligations to the institution due to the delayed disbursement funding from VA under Chapter 31 or 33.

Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Tech may require additional payment or impose a fee for the amount that is the difference between the amount of your financial obligation and the amount of the VA education benefit disbursement. For example, expenses not reimbursed by the VA such as bookstore charges, citation fees, or other course charges that cannot be certified to or paid by the VA.

Students must keep their address current. The fastest way to change an address or change a direct deposit is to call VA (888-442-4551). The automated functions of the phone server do not include changing address or starting Direct Deposit. Students can bypass the phone server and connect to Muskogee by hitting 1 and then 0 when the recording starts.

If a student calls to start (chapters 30 and 1606 only) or change a direct deposit, the student should have their account information handy. The following information is needed to set up direct deposit and can be found on checks and bank statements:

Account number 9 digit bank routing number Type of account (checking or savings)

If a student has direct deposit, the student still needs to keep his or her address current because the verification of enrollment form is mailed to the students address.

VA benefits can be paid for enrollments up to one year before the date VA receives a students application. The date stamp put on the students application determines the one-year date. The VA will determine the date of eligibility and the beginning date from which benefits can be paid.

Chapter 35 retroactive benefits may be handled differently and may exceed one year. If the chapter 35 eligibility date is more than one year before the date VA makes the eligibility decision, then the eligibility date may be considered to be the application date if the individual applies for chapter 35 within one year of the eligibility decision. Under this circumstance, retroactive benefits may be more than one year.

Advance Pay may be paid if:

  • The student requests advance pay, and
  • There's more than 30 days between terms and break pay won't be paid, and
  • The student is enrolled at least half-time, and
  • VA receives the advance payment request at least 30 days but not more than 120 days before the enrollment period.

If a student wants advance pay, the student needs to complete section 16 on form 22-1999 or a form created by the VA Rep.

Advance pay requests should be submitted 30 to 120 days before the begin date. The check will be sent to the school, payable to the student. A separate,Certification of Delivery (VA Form 22-1999V) will be sent to the school. Schools must handle advance paychecks securely and give the advance paycheck to the student when he or she registers (or not more than 30 days before the beginning of school if registration is earlier). When the check is given to the student, immediately complete and return the Certification of Delivery.

An advance will pay the first and second month. The first month may be a partial month, with payment prorated for the number of days attended that month. Advance pay for a student certified 9/27/04 through 6/11/05 would pay 9/27/04 through 10/31/04. Since VA normally pays after a month is completed, the student wouldn't receive another check until December when payment for November is made.

When an advance paycheck is issued, the next check won't issue unless the Certification of Delivery (or the Chapter 1606 generated letter with the same information) mailed to the school is received and processed by VA.

A Tuition Waiver application for Chapter 35 dependents is available for Klamath Falls students from Michelle Monteith in the Financial Aid Office, by email at michelle.monteith@oit.edu , or for Wilsonville students from Kendal Marks at kendal.marks@oit.edu. The waiver may not exceed 20 credit hours per term, and 180 credits in total.

There is also financial assistance for Army National Guard, Army active and Army Reserve through the Army National Guard Federal Tuition Assistance program. See your Unit Education Liaison for more information.

Navy, Marines and Coast Guard are encouraged to contact the Education Liaison for their branch.

Note: Late fees and interest will be charged to all student accounts (including students receiving financial aid and/or VA benefits) with unpaid balances after the payment due date (end of the second week of the term). However, late fees do not apply to students on a payment plan who make all payments by the payment plan due dates. For payment plan due dates, see the Cashier's Calendar here [/business-affairs/accounts-receivable/cashiers-office]. In the case of a student receiving VA benefits who has paid all non-VA covered charges by the payment due date (end of the second week of the term), the late fee and interest will be removed once payment that clears the balance is received as long as the certification deadline (end of the second week of the term) was met. Contact the Cashier’s Office at cashier@oit.edu for help calculating amounts that will not be covered by the VA (please include which VA benefits you are expecting to receive).

Downloads

Veterans Health Benefits Application
Veterans Rights and Responsibilities
Veterans Certification Form

Chapter 35

22-5490 VA Survivors' and Dependents Educational Assistance
22-5495 Request for Change of Program or Place of Training
Ë¿¹ÏÊÓƵ Veteran Dependent Tuition Waiver Application

Chapter 30, 33, 1606, and 1607

22-1990 VA Education Benefits Application
22-1995 Request for Change of Program or Place of Training

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