Rate Of Pursuit and Training Time Calculator
How do I know how many weeks the term is?
Students can use an online date to date calculator such as the one below to determine how many weeks a specific term is.
Time Duration Calculator: Time between two dates/times
How many credits do I need to be full time?
The number of credits you need to be full time for VA education benefits will be based on how long the course/term is, your benefit type, and your degree level.
Undergraduate Programs
The Training Time (TT) chart below is what VA uses to determine full-time status for undergraduate programs under Chapters 30, 35, and 1606. Since MSU Billings considers 12 credits to be full-time, the Training Time chart below would also be accurate for Rate of Pursuit (RoP).
The main difference is that TT is federally codified (38 CFR §21.4270) and RoP is based on the schools catalog and then rounded to the nearest 10%.
Graduate Programs
Graduate Training Time and Rate of Pursuit is always provided by the school. However, since we do not have an Individually Defined Full-Time Modifier (IDM) the charts below will differ slightly. The one above applies to Chapter 33 benefits and is provided by VA. Depending on the length of the course/term, a number from the row highlighted in yellow will be provided to VA.
For example, if it is a 13 week term, we will enter a 6 in the Full-Time Modifier (FTM) box on your certification, which only applies to graduate programs). This means that in a 13 week course/term, you will only need 6 credits to be considered full-time for VA payment purposes.
For Chapters 30, 35, and 1606, we instead report 1/4 time, less than 1/2 time, 1/2 time, 3/4 time, or full-time.
Now that I know my full-time status, how do I know how much my stipend is or what is covered?
That will be determined by your benefit type. Since rates change each year, below are links to the appropriate VA rate pages;
Montgomery GI Bill Active Duty (Chapter 30) Rates | Veterans Affairs
Subsistence Allowance Rates - Veteran Readiness and Employment (VR&E) (if you are not at the Ch 33 rate)
Chapter 35 Rates For Survivors And Dependents | Veterans Affairs
Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) Rates | Veterans Affairs (MHA amount x RoP%)
Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (Chapter 1606) Rates | Veterans Affairs
What about courses that are not the full term or summer sessions were I might have two separate course dates?
Since we are required to report courses with different dates separately, each would only be certified with courses that have the same start and end date. If you fall under this scenario, VA will calculate each certifications TT or RoP individually, then add them together for any period that they overlap. If they do not overlap or have periods that do not overlap, stipend payments will only be based on that certifications TT or RoP.
For example, if you have two 8 week undergraduate courses at 3 credits each and they have a two week overlap, you would be at half-time each certification except for the two week overlap where you would be full-time.
