Education Support Programs

The Departments of Defense, the Army, Veterans Affairs, Labor and Education offer education counseling programs to help you decide your academic future. There are also several non-governmental programs designed to help you succeed in your education endeavors. Some of these programs are described below. 

Joint Services Transcript (JST)
JST is an academically accepted document approved by the American Council on Education (ACE) to validate service member’s military occupational experience and training along with the corresponding ACE college credit recommendations.

TA DECIDE
TA DECIDE is an online tool to support decision-making when it comes to selecting schools, choosing the right program in which to enroll, and making decisions that are aligned with unique personal goals.

Career Path DECIDE
Career Path DECIDE is a decision support tool to help Service members and Veterans identify, prepare for, and become increasingly qualified for employment as they transition military service to the civilian workforce.

College Navigator
College Navigator is an interactive site that allows you to explore and compare features of different institutions, including programs and majors, degree levels, institution type, and admissions considerations, pinpoint school locations with an interactive map, and export search results into a spreadsheet file format.

College Scorecard
College Scorecard is a U.S. Department of Education webpage designed to assist prospective students in determining which school to attend.

CollegeRecon
CollegeRecon is a free virtual tool that connects current or former military personnel and their families with over 3,000 not-for profit colleges and universities across the country.

GI Bill Comparison Tool
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs’ GI Bill Comparison Tool enables users to calculate benefits and research approved programs of study.

Kuder Journey
The Kuder DANTES College and Career Planning Counseling Services System is a one-stop-shop for Service members as they plan, prepare and transition to civilian employment.

Coalition for College
Coalition for College offers fee waivers for veterans and those currently serving that allows eligible students to apply to most member schools without paying any application fees. 

Occupational Outlook Handbook
The OOH is a career resource offering information on the hundreds of occupations that provide the overwhelming majority of jobs in the United States. 

O*NET OnLine
The O*NET Online database provides the basis for our Career Exploration Tools, a set of valuable assessment instruments for workers and students looking to find or change careers. 

HERC and DegreeQuest
HERC and DegreeQuest offer free guidance and support to all National Guard Soldiers and their spouses and dependent children of college age. HERC provides free access to their student support website, SOCRATES (Students Online Connections, Resources & Academics to Enhance Success). Resources on SOCRATES can help you earn college credit by examination (CLEP/DSST), prepare for admissions examinations (ACT, SAT, GRE, GMAT), prepare for certification or license examinations, and more​. 

Khan Academy
Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education for anyone anywhere. Free of charge.

OASC and CPST
Online Academic Skills Course (OASC) and College Placement Skills Training (CPST) are available to Service members, DoD civilians and family members to help prepare for college, build academic skills, and prepare for exams such as CLEP or DSST.

Federal Academic Alliance
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management partnered with several colleges and universities to provide additional learning opportunities to the federal workforce (including military personnel) by arranging reduced tuition rates.

Coursera
Coursera is an education company that partners with the top universities and organizations in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, FOR FREE. Technology enables Coursera's partners to teach millions of students rather than hundreds. 

Massive Open Online Course
MOOCs https://www.mooc.org provide traditional course materials such as filmed lectures, readings and problem sets, as well as providing interactive user forums to support community interactions between students, professors and teaching assistants. MOOCs can especially be useful when preparing for CLEP and DSST exams.                                                                i.     

Modern States Education Alliance
Through MSEA Soldiers can earn college credit by taking free online college prep courses and a corresponding CLEP exam at no cost at a nearby National Test Center (NTC). 

Tutor.com
Tutor.com is an online tool that provides homework and study help from a professional tutor any time you need it. It is FREE for Active Duty or Deploy National Guard Soldiers. Expert tutors are online 24/7 and available to help in more than 16 subjects, including test prep, proofreading, Math, Science, English, and Social Studies.  

Army Civ Udemy
ArmyCiv.Udemy.com is the Army Civilian Career Management Activity Udemy Business site containing thousands of on-demand learning resources. These courses are self-paced and free to Service Members and Army Civilians. Users have access to over 22,000 on-demand courses leading to certifications. Courses in Business Operations, Cloud Computing, Cybersecurity, Data Science, Development, IT Operations, Language Learning, Finance & Accounting, Leadership & Management, Marketing, Personal Development, and many other fields are available 24/7 for free. If you just want to try learning new skills, brush up on your skills, or to prepare for certificates in your desired career field, Army Civ Udemy can meet your learning needs.

Classs Central
Class Central https://www.classcentral.com aggregates courses from many providers to help you find the best courses on almost any subject, wherever they exist. Whatever you are interested in learning, it is more than likely that our catalog includes a course that will meet your needs. Through Class Central, you can find courses; review courses you’ve taken (and read other people’s reviews); follow universities, subjects. And courses to receive personalized updates; and also plan and track your learning. 

DoD MWR Libraries
DoD MWR Libraries https://dodmwrlibraries.org provides incredible free resources for service members and their families. This is a digital collection that includes e-books, audiobooks, movies, academic support, test prep, professional development, career transition, ancestry research, and a vast array of learning resources and online content for all ages and interests. 

Troops to Teachers
Troops to Teachers is a transition program that assists eligible military personnel in meeting the requirements necessary to become teachers in K-12 public, public charter and Bureau of Indian Affairs schools serving low-income families.

Onward to Opportunity
Onward to Opportunity, formerly known as the Veterans Career Transition Program, is a free, comprehensive career skills program that provides civilian career training, professional certifications and job placement support to transitioning service members, members of the selected reserves, veterans and military spouses. O2O partners with private sector companies committed to training and hiring military talent and their spouses earlier in the transition process.

The College Financing Plan
The College Financing Plan is a tool that assists prospective students in understanding the total costs of attendance. The site factors in tuition, fees, housing, meals, books and supplies, transportation, other education costs, grants and scholarships, work-study possibilities, student loans, military education benefits, and other potential factors.

Registered Apprenticeship and On-the-Job Training
Employer-sponsored registered apprenticeship (RA) and on-the-job training programs provide a unique opportunity to earn full-time wages, collect GI Bill benefits and attain a nationally recognized credential in over 1,300 officially recognized occupations. Key RA industries include aerospace, biotechnology, construction, energy, geospatial, healthcare, information and communications technology, advanced manufacturing, and transportation and logistics.