Before You Request to Use Educational Benefits

Prior to enrolling in courses at UIS we encourage you to reach out to your Educational Services Officer (ESO) or counselor within your Military Service or a Veterans Service Officer (VSO) to make sure you fully understand the benefits available to you.

In order to receive Veterans Affairs (VA) educational benefits, you must be admitted to or enrolled in a program leading to a degree or certificate awarded by the University of Illinois Springfield. If you are taking remedial, refresher, or prerequisite courses, you must provide a written memo on department letterhead from your dean or academic advisor indicating that the courses will transfer to your degree program.

The links below provide information on initiating educational benefits processes: 

To receive maximum educational benefit payments under the Veterans’ Readjustment Benefits Act of 1966, undergraduate, graduate, and professional students are required to be registered and actively attending as full-time students. For VA purposes, full-time status is defined as actively attending at least 12 concurrent hours during fall or spring or 6 concurrent hours during summer.

You must submit a Veterans Enrollment Certification Request Form for each term you request payment of VA educational benefits. You are encouraged to submit the form after you’ve finalized your enrollment each term. Post-9/11 GI Bill® students should also submit a copy of their Certificate of Eligibility received each term.

Residency is determined when you submit your application for admission. If you’re actively serving in the military and are stationed in Illinois or your home of record is Illinois, contact the Office of the Registrar before completing your application for residency. If you are actively receiving Chapter 33 Post 9/11 Veterans Education Benefits, you’re considered an Illinois resident for tuition purposes only after you’ve been verified as receiving Chapter 33 by Veteran Services.

Using Educational Benefits at UIS

The use of educational benefits at UIS is coordinated through the Office of Financial Assistance located in University Hall Building 1015. The Veterans (School) Certifying Official is:

Angie Tippey
P: (217) 206-6724
E: astee2@uis.edu

To initiate this process you will need to complete the appropriate Request for Veteran Program Benefits form. (NOTE: You will need to complete a new form each semester) The form for each semester can be found on the UIS Financial Aid website’s forms page. From this page, select the academic year you are applying for, then scroll down to the section labeled Veterans and select the form for the correct semester. Complete the document and upload it into the UIS Self Service Portal using the following directions:

  1. Log in to the UIS Enterprise Self-Service system
  2. Click on the top Financial Aid Tab
  3. Click on Student Requirements
  4. Select Aid Year
  5. Next to the Requirement you are submitting, click only on == >UPLOAD.
  6. Choose the file you are needing to upload and select SUBMIT.

For more information on uploading documents, please read our Document Upload Configuration Guidelines (pdf).

Fall 2023 Veterans Benefits Request Form (pdf)

Spring 2024 Veteran Education Benefit Request Form (pdf)

Summer 2024 Veterans Benefits Request Form (pdf)

After your benefits have been submitted

Where Financial Assistance is responsible for helping with benefits, scholarships, and student loans, the University Bursar's Office is responsible for collecting payments and managing your account balance. Occasionally veterans’ benefits are not disbursed to student accounts on a timeline that matches the University payment deadlines (to help avoid this situation, please submit your benefits request early). In instances where a student has completed the benefits process (*and has no remaining/additional balance to address*) and UIS has certified the benefits, but the benefit payment has not been disbursed to UIS, the Bursar's Office, Financial Assistance, and UIS Office of Military and Veteran Student Services will work together to ensure that you are not charged any undue late fees or placed on a financial hold. There are a few key things to remember about your student account:

  • Payments are due on September 28th for fall coursework, February 28th for spring coursework, and June 28th for summer coursework
  • Make sure to check your UIS email for monthly billing information as the above due dates approach.
  • It is your responsibility to manage your account and to reach out to the Bursar's Office prior to payment deadlines to clarify any issues/balances.
  • If for some reason you will be unable to make your payment on time, the Bursar's Office can work with you to set up a payment plan.