Educational Benefits

The State of Ohio waives its normal 12-month residency requirement for in-state tuition rates for qualifying veterans. Qualified vets are also not required to be enrolled in a state college in order to gain residency for their dependents. Qualifying criteria includes (but is not limited to) the following:

1. Honorable discharge or medical separation from the military with at least one year of time in service. Veteran dependents also are eligible if the veteran was killed in action, declared missing in action, or declared a prisoner of war.
2. Eligibility must be documented via a DD214.
3. The veteran and/or dependents must reside in Ohio as of the first day of enrollment. (Where the veteran was KIA, MIA or POW, only the dependents are required to live in Ohio.)
4. Dependent eligibility must be documented as follows:

• Proof of marriage/marriage certificate
• Proof of dependent status as provided by the veteran parent’s federal tax paperwork submitted for the previous year
• Documentation of the military member’s status as a POW, MIA, or KIA

Ohio National Guard members can receive up to 96 credits of tuition assistance during their enlistment, which equates to four years towards an undergraduate degree at participating schools.

To be eligible for these Ohio veteran benefits, members must:

• Not have a bachelor’s degree
• Be currently serving in good standing
• Be in an active six-year enlistment (to qualify for the full 96 credits of tuition assistance)

Members have five years from their discharge date to use remaining units once they apply.

 Members may visit the online portal to apply.

This scholarship pays for 100% of tuition and general fees at public universities and up to $7,044 for private institutions in Ohio to children of:

• POW/MIA service members,  
• Service members killed in the line of      duty,  
• Veterans with a VA service-connected disability rating of 60% or greater, or
• Veterans with a VA Permanent and Total non-service-connected disability

To be eligible, applicants must be:

• Enrolled full-time in undergraduate study
• Age 16 to 25
• Achieving a minimum GPA of 2.0
• In financial need
• A legal resident of Ohio for at least one year, OR a resident for the year preceding the year they apply plus any other four years during the last ten years

Apply for the Ohio War Orphan and Severely Disabled Veteran’s Scholarship online. 

A high school diploma is offered to any Ohio resident who was honorably discharged from military service and left high school to serve in WWII, Korea, or Vietnam before graduating. 

Women who left high school before graduating to join the workforce to support family during the war effort are also eligible. 

The diploma may be awarded posthumously. 

Contact your local County Veterans Service Office to apply. 

In 2013, an executive order began requiring Ohio colleges to consider military training and experience and award appropriate credit and credentialing.   

Under the program, an ongoing review of educational policies and practices is evolving to simplify the process of awarding college credit for military experience. Consult your campus Veteran Services representative to learn what current rules are applicable before you apply