The Department of Veteran’s Affairs does many things well, but disseminating information is not one of them. Information pertaining to education benefits, other than the G.I. Bill, is very hard to come by and always surrounded in lore. This became very apparent when I applied for vocational rehabilitation.
As a law school student, I am always looking for ways out of paying for my education. As a veteran, I have grown accustom to having my education paid in full with a little extra to live on. This was an excellent setup until I exhausted my Post 9/11 G.I. Bill benefits at the end of last semester. You never realize how much you appreciate something until it is gone. It was hard breakup, but we had a good run. I used the Montgomery G.I. Bill to fund part of community college when out of the Marines in 2006. I say part, because the Montgomery G.I. Bill would not cover my $2,400 annual tuition. I graduated to the Post 9/11 when I enrolled at a four year school, which was more than adequate. It even took me through the first year of law school. Those were good times.
In anticipation of exhausting the G.I. Bill, I called the VA to see if there were any other programs that I may qualify for. They told me that if I have a service connected disability, I may qualify for vocational rehabilitation. I am rated at 10%, so I figured I would give it a shot. As I tried to research the specifics of “voc rehab” I found very little information on the VA website. After a few phone calls to the VA, which provided even less information than the website, I turned to the internet for answers. Among the many veteran’s chat rooms and discussion boards I found many answers, ranging from the greatly exaggerated to the obviously wrong.
With virtually no idea if I qualified for the program or what kind of benefits it offers, I decided to apply for vocational rehabilitation in he hopes that the Federal Government would pay for the rest of law school (or at least some of it). After eventually finding and filling out the correct form on the VA’s website, I pressed submit and waited. Roughly four short months later, I received a letter which told me to report to the vocational rehabilitation office for orientation.
After watching a 15 minute video and shuffling the stack of pamphlets and papers that were handed out, I was scheduled to come back the next week to meet with a counselor who would determine my fate. My original meeting was postponed due to the government shutdown, but few weeks later I found myself sitting in an office while a counselor looked through my transcripts, aptitude/vocational preference test results, and medical paperwork.
After a thorough examination of my qualifications, the counselor explained the purpose of the vocational rehabilitation program is to assist disabled veterans with finding a career that would suit them based on their aptitude, interest, and (most importantly) their medical limitations. He also explained that although technically veterans with a 10% disability rating can apply for the program, 20% is usually the minimum rating needed to actually qualify for the program. In addition, the VA looks for evidence, specifically work history, that shows a veteran’s disabilities have made it difficult to maintain employment. Once they find a veteran who meets these criteria the VA will assist the veteran with pursuing the proper training to pursue a career that suits their needs and abilities. This assistance can range from paying for college or graduate school to paying for a professional license and training.
Although I am slightly disappointed that I did not qualify for the program, I was more disappointed with the VA’s inability to provide veterans with basic information. I understand that eligibility for programs like vocational rehabilitation are highly specific to the person applying, but it would have saved everyone time and money had someone told me what the scope of the program is and what the qualification are. Instead, it took months for me to find this information through a counselor. Had I known that this program was not designed for a person in my situation, I would not have applied.
Despite the frustration with the VA keeping tight lipped about their policies, it is good to know that this program exists and it is being reserved for those who are truly deserving. Fortunately this experience was not a total loss; the counselor told me that he had heard a rumor that the VA will, on occasion, extend a veteran’s G.I. Bill benefits from 36 months to 42 or 48 months. Hopefully I will be able to find out the truth before I graduate from law school.