Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) Program

This program pays eligible tuition and allowable fees (effective for fall 2005 term, includes mandatory fees) at any Illinois public college or community college.* Qualified applicants may use this grant at the undergraduate or graduate level for the equivalent of four academic years of full-time enrollment. Contact the college's financial aid office to determine the amount of the eligible tuition and mandatory fees that will be covered by this grant.

Individuals who qualify for IVG and the Montgomery G.I. Bill may receive benefits from both programs during the same academic year for eligible educational expenses.

To obtain information and an online application for G. I. Education benefits, call the Department of Veterans Affairs at 888.GI BILL1 or visit their Web site at http://www.gibill.va.gov/education/benefits.htm.

* Beginning with the fall 2005 term, in addition to paying tuition, the Illinois Veteran Grant will expand to cover mandatory fees (previously, only certain allowable fees were covered). In addition to tuition and mandatory fees, recipients who were assessed IVG eligibility units during the spring and/or summer 2005 terms may continue to receive IVG benefits for certain allowable fees (even if they are not the same fees) as long as they remain enrolled in a continuous program of study. The continuous program of study must be during subsequent terms (no breaks in enrollment), but does not have to be at the same college. In the case of a transfer, it will be the responsibility of the recipient to inform the new college if he/she received IVG benefits at the previous college.

If the recipient fails to enroll for a subsequent term of a regular school year (not including summer), unless for reasons of being called to federal active duty service, only tuition and mandatory fees will be paid during future periods of enrollment.

 Eligibility

To be a qualified applicant, individuals must:  

• Have served at least one year of federal active duty service in the Armed Forces of the United States, unless they:
  • served in a foreign country in a time of hostilities in that country, or
  • were medically discharged and the medical reason for discharge was service related, or
  • were discharged prior to August 11, 1967.
• Have received an honorable discharge for each period of federal active duty service, and/or be honorably serving.**
• Not be a member of the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC).
• Have resided in Illinois within six months before entering federal active duty service or within six months prior to entering the service.
• Have returned or plan to return to Illinois within six months after leaving federal active duty service unless they are residing with a spouse in continued military service and establish or plan to establish Illinois residency within six months of his/her leaving federal active duty service.
• Be enrolled at an Illinois public 2- or 4-year college.
• Reside in Illinois unless they are serving federal active duty service at the time of enrollment in college or residing with a spouse in continued military service who is currently stationed outside of Illinois.
• Not be in default on any student loan, nor owe a refund on any state or federal grant.
• Maintain the minimum grade point average (GPA) required by their college.

** Upon discharge, individuals who receive benefits from the IVG Program while serving federal active duty service will be required to verify that their service has been characterized as honorable.

How to Apply

The application used to apply for the IVG Program has been updated to reflect recent legislative changes; the current version has 07/05 in the footer that appears at the bottom of each page. Applicants can obtain an IVG Program application from College Zone, their college's financial aid office, or the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs field offices. Applicants submit their complete application and required documentation as specified on the application to ISAC's Deerfield office. In order to ensure that an application is processed in a timely manner, applicants should carefully read the instructions (including the second page of the application), submit all required documentation, and contact a College Zone Counselor if they are uncertain about what documentation is needed.

For an equivalent copy of a DD214 Member 4, contact the Illinois Department of Veterans’ Affairs, P.O. Box 19432, Springfield, Illinois 62794-9432 or phone 217.782.4652, or the National Personnel Records Center.

Applications for the IVG Program can be submitted any time during the academic year for which assistance is being requested, and need to be submitted only once to establish eligibility. ISAC will send qualified applicants a Notice of Eligibility. It is important to keep a copy of the notice in order to present a copy to the college as needed. (ISAC's processing time is approximately four weeks.) Recipients must notify their college's financial aid office of their eligibility status as soon as possible, but not later than the last scheduled day of classes for the term for which a grant is requested.

For more information, contact ISAC, a field office of the Illinois Department of Veterans' Affairs, or the college's financial aid office.

How Funds Are Disbursed

ISAC works with the college to disburse funds for this program. The college certifies student eligibility and then submits a payment request on behalf of the student. It may take up to eight weeks after the date that ISAC processes the payment request before funds are received at the college.

Depending on the college, students may be responsible for payment until program funds are received. Qualified applicants who are awaiting receipt of funds from this program should contact the Financial Aid Office or Business Office to determine the college's policy.

Click here to download the Illinois Veteran Grant (IVG) application.

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