Veterans

The Fletcher School has a long history of welcoming veterans, active-duty military, reservists and their families to the school and community. Your experience in the armed forces will enhance your studies at Fletcher, and we are dedicated to working with veterans, dependents and current active-duty military students to help you achieve both your academic and career goals.

Dedicated Support for Veterans

Connect with our Associate Director of Veterans Affairs to address questions and learn more.

Nora Moser McMillan 
Associate Director of Veterans Affairs 
Email: nora.mcmillan@tufts.edu

Programs

Fletcher is an approved institution for veterans' benefits programs:

The Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) benefits.

The Yellow Ribbon Program: additional financial assistance supplements the base educational benefits provided by CH33. Fletcher’s annual contribution to Yellow Ribbon is a maximum of $8,000 per year. The Yellow Ribbon amount awarded is part of the overall financial aid package offered by Fletcher. Fletcher does not limit the number of Yellow Ribbon participants. 

In order to receive Yellow Ribbon funding, participants must be 100% eligible for Post-9/11 benefits or a spouse of an active duty service member who has served at least 36 months on active duty, or a dependent child using benefits. Students using Yellow Ribbon must be in a degree seeking program and will accrue a total of tuition and fees amount that is more than the Post-9/11 private tuition maximum for the academic year.  For VA purposes, the academic year starts on August 1. For an overview on how benefits work in the residency program, please go to this powerpoint presentation.

Your Eligibility for VA Educational Benefits

At Fletcher, the majority of our current veteran students are studying using the Chapter 33: Post 9.11 GI Bill benefit. In order to obtain more information regarding your eligibility for other VA educational benefits, such as Chapter 30: Montgomery Bill, please refer the Department of Veterans Affairs website.

Using VA Benefits for Your Fletcher Degree

New Students

Once your VA benefit application is approved and you receive the Certificate of Eligibility statement from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, you need to complete the following steps to certify the use of your benefit for the first time at Fletcher:

  • Send a copy of your Certificate of Eligibility to Nora McMillan, Associate Director of Veteran Affairs at: nora.mcmillan@tufts.edu.
  • Complete the following survey:  VASCO – Academic Status Update Form
  • A school certifying officer will evaluate and verify your VA benefit details and certify your tuition, mandatory fees and Yellow Ribbon award through the VA’s Enrollment Manager system.
  • A school certifying official will then request that the Tufts University Bursar's Office enter a provisional credit of the expected GI VA benefit amounts, including any yellow ribbon for each eligible student. This will show up in the ‘expected financial aid’ section on SIS.

Continuing Students

Approximately one month before billing for the upcoming term (typically July for fall; November for Spring; and May for summer), students will receive a request to complete the VASCO – Academic Status Update Form. Students are required to complete this survey to update his/her academic progression as well as the remaining VA educational benefit duration. Students do not need to submit their Certificate of Benefits unless there has been a change. 

Both Incoming and Continuing Students

After receiving the certifying information, the VA will transfer the educational benefit directly to the student's Tufts account. It will be listed as "VA BENEFIT" or “VA Yellow Ribbon.” If the student is receiving the Yellow Ribbon award in a particular semester, it will be listed as "Fletcher Yellow Ribbon."

Students can always work with the Nora McMillan to get a breakdown by semester of how we expect a bill will look with expected GI benefits, including yellow ribbon and scholarship.

Based on the information on the form as well as your VA benefits eligibility, a school certifying official will certify your tuition, mandatory fees, and Yellow Ribbon award (if applicable) for the upcoming semester through the VA’s Enrollment Manager system.   

A school certifying official will then request that the Tufts University Bursar's Office enter a provisional credit of the expected GI benefit amounts, including any yellow ribbon for each eligible student. This will show up in the ‘expected financial aid’ section on SIS.

Educational Benefit

Post-9/11 GI Bill® (Chapter 33) Payment Rates can be found here.

Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018:  In compliance with S2248 PL 115-407 Section 103, veterans and eligible dependents who have notified Tufts that they are using VA educational benefits such as the Post 9/11 GI Bill will not be imposed a late fee, be denied access to facilities, or receive another penalty due to a late payment of tuition and/or fees from the VA directly to Tufts. This applies if payments have not been received within 90 days of the beginning of the term and applies only to the amount of the expected VA payment. 

Yellow Ribbon

The current Yellow Ribbon Scholarship award at Tufts is a maximum of $8,000 annually for students enrolled in the Fletcher School. Yellow ribbon is part of the overall scholarship awarded by The Fletcher School. That is to say, if a student receives a $10k scholarship, $2k is general Fletcher Scholarship and the remaining amount is yellow ribbon and will be used when GI benefits Additional information can be found here.

Veterans Benefits and Transition Act of 2018:  In compliance with S2248 PL 115-407 Section 103, veterans and eligible dependents who have notified Tufts that they are using VA educational benefits such as the Post 9/11 GI Bill will not be imposed a late fee, be denied access to facilities, or receive another penalty due to a late payment of tuition and/or fees from the VA directly to Tufts. This applies if payments have not been received within 90 days of the beginning of the term and applies only to the amount of the expected VA payment.

Additional Information

(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 Web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.)

Useful links

For questions regarding health benefits, please contact:

  • VA Boston Healthcare  Someone is available to assist you during regular business hours at 1-800-865-3384 ext. 46780 (or direct line 1-857-364-6780).
  • Ruth Aguila, Insurance Coordinator, Tufts Health Services, 617-627-5176
  • GI Bill Hotline: 888-GIBILL-1 (Within the U.S.) or 001-716-857-3196 (Outside the U.S.)

Fletcher participates in a wide variety of programs that offer substantial financial assistance to U.S. active-duty service members, as well as U.S. veterans and their families:

  • Advanced Civil Schooling (ACS) Program
  • Foreign Area Officers (FAOs)
  • Expanded Graduate School Program
  • General Wayne Downing Scholarship Program
  • Navy Political Military Scholarship Program (POL-MIL)
  • Fleet Scholar Education Program (FSEP): The program is geared for junior and mid-level unrestricted Line (URL) and Information Warfare Community (IWC) officers. FSEP selectees can choose any accredited graduate school in the continental U.S., Alaska or Hawaii and attend for up to 24 months.
  • Arthur S. Moreau Scholarship
  • US Navy Government Voucher Program
  • Marine Corps: One mid-career MA selected
  • Chief of Staff Air Force Prestigious PhD Program
  • ISSP Military Fellows
  • Commissioned Officers with Graduate School Option (GRADSO)
  • Army Performance-Based Graduate Incentive Program
  • Strategic Thinkers Program, U.S. Department of Defense
  • Academic Institution (AI) Portal for the Air Force ( TA )
  • Navy College Program (TA)
  • Army IgnitED (TA)
  • The Pat Tillman Foundation
  • The American Legion Legacy Scholarship