Every benefit, one structure, every claim sourced.
20 structured records covering federal and California education benefits: who administers each one, what it covers and excludes, which office handles the next step, and how it interacts with the others.
Federal VA and DoD benefits
Veterans and service members with qualifying active-duty service after September 10, 2001; eligible dependents through transferred entitlement; eligible survivors through the Fry Scholarship.
Veterans and service members who paid into MGIB during qualifying active duty.
Members of the Selected Reserve, including National Guard, with a qualifying obligation.
Veterans and some service members with a service-connected disability and an employment handicap, as determined by VA.
Children and spouses of veterans who died in service, died of a service-connected condition, or are permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition, among other qualifying categories.
Children and surviving spouses of service members who died in the line of duty (and certain other qualifying deaths defined by statute).
Students using the Post-9/11 GI Bill at the 100 percent tier (including Fry recipients) whose charges exceed what Chapter 33 pays.
Post-9/11 GI Bill or Fry recipients in qualifying STEM degree, teaching credential, or covered clinical training paths who have exhausted or nearly exhausted entitlement.
Transitioning service members, veterans, and dependents eligible for a VA education benefit.
Students using a VA education benefit at a three-quarter time rate or more.
Active-duty members, and members of some reserve components, per branch policy.
California programs
Dependents (and in some plans spouses or survivors) of qualifying veterans, under four plans (A through D) with different service, disability, and income rules.
Actively serving members of the California National Guard, State Guard, and Naval Militia who meet service and enrollment conditions.
Students using covered VA education benefits (categories expanded by federal law over time) enrolled at public institutions.
Members of the Armed Forces and qualifying veterans (statute defines the covered window after service), at California Community Colleges and California State University; the University of California is requested to comply and addresses it by campus policy.
Students with military training and experience documented on the Joint Services Transcript or equivalent.
Financial aid that coordinates with benefits
California students meeting financial, GPA, and program requirements; not veteran-specific, but widely used by military-connected students.
Eligible UC and CSU students (and certain community college teaching-credential students) within income and asset limits.
Undergraduates with financial need per the FAFSA calculation; not veteran-specific.
First-time community college students meeting campus program rules; not veteran-specific.
Dollar figures and annually changing thresholds are not hardcoded in these records; each record points to the official source for current-year values. Download the library on the data page.
The California Veteran Education Observatory is an independent research and public-information project of The Veteran Benefit Desk. It is not affiliated with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, the California Department of Veterans Affairs, the California Student Aid Commission, or any college or university. It does not provide individualized legal, financial-aid, education, or benefits advice.
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at va.gov/education.
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