The Department of Defense announces the launch of an information and comparison tool called Tuition Assistance (TA) DECIDE that will allow Service members interested in using TA benefits to access essential information related to educational institutions and outcomes. This tool is yet another of DoD’s efforts to increase transparency and accountability commensurate with Executive Order 13607 and the Principles of Excellence.

TA DECIDE is intended to empower Service members, who differ from the general population in that the vast majority, are full-time warriors/part-time students. TA DECIDE provides Service members the information needed to make informed educational choices based on the experiences of other students just like them. This tool leverages similar tools and data sets developed by other agencies, incorporating not only lessons learned by those agencies, but also taking data feeds directly from them. Uniquely, this tool also separates out information that is exclusive to the experience of TA participants and reports relevant comparisons to that demographic.

Additionally, for the first time, DoD is publicly releasing information about usage trends related to the use of DoD TA benefits at any particular school. TA DECIDE can be used to search and compare information on our 2,600+ approved schools eligible for TA, including information on average TA costs, course completion, graduation and estimated tuition and fee amounts. The tool is designed to support personal searches by individual Service members, as well as collaborative interactions with DoD’s professional force of education counselors placed in the field to support our TA participants.

You may be eligible for several types of VA education and training benefits, but there are many things to consider before you apply for a GI Bill program. For most participants, the Post-9/11 GI Bill is the best option. Other students would benefit more from the Montgomery GI Bill. The following comparison tools may make it easier to decide which education and training benefits are best for you To view the different educational and training rates from the VA use the following link. 

NOTE: The University of Maryland - College Park is a Yellow Ribbon Program school as of the 2015-2016 school year.  

If you have any questions concerning Veterans education benefits, please contact the Veteran's Certification Office:

Veterans Certification Office

University of Maryland 
1113 Mitchell Building 
Phone:(301) 314-8239             
Fax: (301)-314-9568 
Email: vabenefits@umd.edu

You must fill out the UMD VA Enrollment Certification Request and submit to the Veterans Certification Office before you can receive your G.I. Bill benefits.

G.I. Bill Benefit Website — This is a great resource for Veterans and dependents about the G.I. Bill. You can create an account where you can have your questions answered by officials from the Department of Veterans Affairs. 

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