Office of the Registrar

Veterans

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT VA EDUCATIONAL BENEFITS

APPLYING FOR VA BENEFITS

  • Apply online using the Veterans On-line Application Website (VONAPP).

CMU VETERANS' REGISTRATION FORM

  • Students must complete and submit the CMU GI Bill Enrollment Certification Request each semester and submit it to the appropriate Certifying Official for enrollment certification with the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).

Questions?

AUDITED COURSES

  • Certification of enrollment for audited courses is prohibited.

CERTIFICATION OF ELIGIBILITY

  • When education benefits are approved, the VA will mail a certificate of eligibility to the student.  This certificate is issued only once, and it will indicate the number of months of eligibility.  A copy of this notification must be provided to your Certifying Official.

CERTIFYING OFFICIAL

  • Depending on the location of your class, enrollment may be certified by different officials:
  • Courses offered in Michigan or online will be certified by the Registrar's Office, Warriner Hall 212, Mount Pleasant, MI  48859.
  • Courses offered outside the state of Michigan will be certified by the Off-Campus Program Center in which the student is registered for classes.

CHANGING SCHOOLS

DECLARING A MAJOR

  • All undergraduate students must declare a major by the time they have earned 56 credit hours.

DEPLOYMENT

  • Students called to active duty during a term in which they are receiving VA Educational Benefits must notify their Certifying Official and provide a copy of their orders.
  • The Certifying Official will report the date of their withdrawal from school to the VA and indicate the reason as "Called to Active Duty". 

DROP PERIOD

  • For VA purposes, the drop period is a reasonable time at the beginning of a term officially designated by the school for dropping courses providing it does not exceed 30 days from the first day of the term.

DROPPING A COURSE

  • If you drop a course during the semester/term, the VA may consider the drop retroactive to the start of the semester/course.  If dropping classes changes your enrollment status, an overpayment situation may occur.  All drops should be reported directly to your Certifying Official.

FAILING GRADES (E AND NC)

  • The Certifying Official is required to contact the instructor of any course in which a failing grade was received.  If the instructor can verify that the final exam was taken, no repayment to the VA will be expected.  If the final exam was not taken, the VA may require repayment of benefits retroactive to the first day of class.

GRADES

  • Students receiving VA benefits must receive punitive grades in their courses.  If the student receives a non-punitive grade, they may be charged with an overpayment. 
  • Punitive Grade - is used in determining a student's progress toward completion of graduation requirements, and is a factor in computing grade point average.  Punitive grades include:  A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, and E.
  • Non-punitive Grade - excludes the course from any consideration in determining progress toward fulfillment of graduation requirements.  Students may be charged with an overpayment for courses in which a non-punitive grade is received.  Non-punitive grades include:  I, NC, W, and Z.

GUEST STUDENT CERTIFICATION

  • If you are a guest student at CMU requesting VA certification, your home school must complete and forward to your Certifying Official a parent letter indicating that the courses you are taking at Central Michigan University will satisfy the degree requirements at that school.

INCOMPLETE AND DEFERRED GRADES (I and Z)

  • Incomplete and deferred grades must be removed and a regular grade received for that course(s) within one calendar year from the date of receipt.
  • Incomplete and deferred grades are not counted in determining a student's enrollment status for certification of eligibility for future enrollments.
  • Incomplete and deferred grades will be reported to the VA which can lead to an overpayment situation at the end of the semester.

INTERNSHIPS, PRACTICA, INDEPENDENT STUDIES, AND THESES

  • All courses listed in the CMU Bulletin(s) as internships, practica, independent studies, field studies, etc. will be considered as independent study for certification purposes. 

MINIMUM DEGREE HOURS

  • Certification of enrollment will be denied once the minimum hours required for a degree from CMU have been completed.  Exceptions can be made; however you must contact your Certifying Official as soon as possible for information about this procedure.
  • Requirements for Bachelor's Degree - 124
  • Requirements for a Master's Degree - 30-36

PLAN OF STUDY

  • CMU requires on-campus undergraduate students to submit an academic audit when the student has earned 56 hours and again when 86 hours are earned.
  • CMU requires off-campus undergraduate students to have a program plan in place when the student has earned 56 hours.
  • Only courses/credits that apply toward completion of the student's program can be certified to VA.
  • Failure to comply with this requirement will prevent enrollment certification for future semesters.

REPEATING A COURSE

  • Courses that are failed or for which the grade does not meet minimum requirements for graduation may be certified with the VA if they are repeated.
  • Courses that are successfully completed may not be certified with the VA if they are repeated.

SATISFACTORY ACADEMIC PROGRESS

  • All students receiving VA education benefits are required to maintain satisfactory academic progress according to published standards established and enforced by the University. 

SELF-VERIFICATION OF ENROLLMENT

  • Chapter 30, 1606 and 1607 students must verify their enrollment monthly, on the last day of the month; monthly verification has not been adopted for Chapters 33 or 35. Payments will not be sent until this is done. 
  • Verify Online (preferred) through Web Automated Verification of Enrollment (WAVE).  Students must be currently enrolled in an approved educational program and must have a current benefit award to use WAVE.
  • Verify by Interactive Voice Response (IVR) at 877-823-2378. 

SHORT-TERM COURSES

  • The VA requires CMU to report the actual beginning and ending dates of each course.  Note:  Your VA award may vary throughout the semester, according to the start and end dates of your courses.

WITHDRAWALS

  • The VA will not credit a course toward your enrollment status if the final grade is a "W."
  • Withdrawal grades will be reported to the VA which can lead to an overpayment situation at the end of the semester.