Space Force members take off-duty college courses under the Department of the Air Force’s Military Tuition Assistance program (TA).
Payment
TA pays for up to 100% tuition for the college courses that uniformed Space Force guardians take, not to exceed:
- $250 per semester credit hour
- $166.67 per quarter hour
- $4,500 maximum per fiscal year
The Air Force Personnel Center provided the following details about the TA education benefit for members of the Space Force:
Application Process
Space Force members must apply for TA online on the website of the Air Force Virtual Education Center (AFVEC). Department policy requires members to create a goal and upload a degree plan prior to requesting TA (see the “Tutorials” on the AFVEC site). Students may upload a generic degree/academic as a placeholder for up to six semester hours until an evaluated degree plan is in place. Here’s how to apply:
- Students must request TA before class starts, no more than 45 days and no less than seven days prior to the start date.
- A supervisor must electronically approve all TA requests before the course start date and can deny the request if the supervisor believes circumstances would prevent the student from successfully completing the course.
- A student who withdraws from a course must notify the school and the AFVEC immediately.
- Students must pay back TA in the cases of unsatisfactory or missing grades. Unsatisfactory grades are a D or below in an undergraduate course; or a C or below in a graduate course.
- If military duties prevent a student from attending class, the student may qualify for a waiver from the requirement to repay, but only after withdrawing from the course.
- Students must submit a letter explaining the reason(s) for withdrawing from a course signed by their squadron commander/director/first sergeant, along with any supporting documentation.
- Students must ensure that their education record reflects their official course grade within 60 days after a class ends.
- Students are allowed 15 semester hours (five classes) to establish a GPA. To continue using TA, they must maintain a 2.0 GPA for undergraduate degrees or a 3.0 GPA for graduate degrees.
- TA won’t be approved for courses leading to a lateral or lower-level degree than a student already has, such as a second associate or bachelor’s degree.
- Officers who have completed a department-sponsored master’s degree cannot use TA.
CCAF Exception to Pursuing a Lateral Degree
- Space Force enlisted personnel can pursue one civilian associate degree after completion of a Community College of the Air Force (CCAF) associate of applied science degree.
- Enlisted personnel with an associate degree or higher can pursue an initial and subsequent CCAF associate of applied science degree.
Failing and Incomplete Grades; and Other Expenses
TA users who have to pay back any money due to a failing grade can initiate a reimbursement for a lump-sum repayment; or payroll deduction over a maximum of six months.
In the case of a grade of incomplete, Air Force TA users have as much time as the school allows them to clear the incomplete or 120 days from the end of the course, whichever comes first, to clear the incomplete. Failing to clear the incomplete by that time requires the TA recipient to pay back any tuition assistance.
TA doesn’t cover Space Force members’ books or non-reimbursable fees.
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