Education Support Programs

Tools To Help Make Your Educational Decisions

Joint Services Transcript (JST)
JST is an academically accepted document approved by the American Council on Education (ACE) to validate service member's military occupational experience and training along with the corresponding ACE college credit recommendations.

MilGears
MilGears is a decision support tool that can assist you in researching options before selecting credentials and/or degrees by completing an interest inventory. The tool will analyze your input into the interest inventory, provide you with related civilian occupations you may be interested in, and show the related credentials and/or academic degrees that support your career choices. If you find an occupation and credential you are interested in, you'll have the option to download and save a summary page of those selections that you can keep as a reference.

TA DECIDE
TA DECIDE is an online tool to support decision-making when it comes to selecting schools, choosing the right program in which to enroll, and making decisions that are aligned with unique personal goals.

Career Path DECIDE
Career Path DECIDE is a decision support tool to help Service members and Veterans identify, prepare for, and become increasingly qualified for employment as they transition military service to the civilian workforce.

The College Financing Plan
The College Financing Plan is a tool that assists prospective students in understanding the total costs of attendance. The site factors in tuition, fees, housing, meals, books and supplies, transportation, other education costs, grants and scholarships, work-study possibilities, student loans, military education benefits, and other potential factors

College Navigator
College Navigator is an interactive site that allows you to explore and compare features of different institutions, including programs and majors, degree levels, institution type, and admissions considerations, pinpoint school locations with an interactive map, and export search results into a spreadsheet file format.

College Scorecard
College Scorecard is a U.S. Department of Education webpage designed to assist prospective students in determining which school to attend.

CollegeRecon
CollegeRecon is a free virtual tool that connects current or former military personnel and their families with over 3,000 not-for profit colleges and universities across the country.

GI Bill Comparison Tool
The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs' GI Bill Comparison Tool enables users to calculate benefits and research approved programs of study.

Coalition for College
Coalition for College offers fee waivers for veterans and those currently serving that allows eligible students to apply to most member schools without paying any application fees. 

Occupational Outlook Handbook
The OOH is a career resource offering information on the hundreds of occupations that provide the overwhelming majority of jobs in the United States. 

O*NET OnLine
The O*NET Online database provides the basis for our Career Exploration Tools, a set of valuable assessment instruments for workers and students looking to find or change careers. 


My Next Move
My Next Move's extraordinary tools include a quick search function, MOS-related careers (through the O*NET Interest Profiler) and the ability to connect to the Bureau of Labor Statistics and O*NET Online. You can also print or email your results. 

Tools To Help While You Are In School

Department of the Army University: 
DAU is a modern learning platform delivering continuous learning and support tailored to the needs of the Defense Acquisition Workforce. It is a resource open to DoD employees, with offering that include formal in-person and online events and workshops, job support tools, and consulting.

DANTES MilEd Benefits Mobile App: 
The DANTES MilEd Benefits Mobile App makes it easy to get started and map out a plan to reach your education and career goals. The mobile app includes the following features and capabilities:

• eGuides designed for quick access to learn about recommended military educational programs Military Services' Education Program Information provided to support the Services' Voluntary Education (VolEd) communities and individual service members by focusing on specific Service education and career planning resources
• DANTES Education Program Information provided to support a member's pursuit of their educational and career goals
• Tools for Professional Education Counselors designed to help the Services' Voluntary Education (VolEd) community of professionals assist military students with their education journey
• News and Updates, Videos, and Encouragement to keep you informed

Evernote
Evernote is an online note taking software available to help you: digitize, organize, and sync your notes across devices. The free version allows up to 50 notes in 1 notebook w/ the ability to attach pdfs, files, photos, and more.


GoConqr
GoConqr is a freemium platform that provides you with the tools and materials to create revision materials that work for you. With millions of users creating online resources for students – on topics from Algebra to Zoology- the digital library can help no matter what you’re studying. The library presents material relevant to you based on your learning interests, or simply type your search terms in the search bar. GoConqr also allows you to put together stunning online re-sources to suit your own learning style. Create media-rich study materials that display old information in vibrant new ways. You can choose from Flashcards, Flowcharts, Notes, Slides, Quizzes, and Mind Maps, or combine them all to make a complete Course.


Grammarly
Grammarly is cloud-based typing assistant. It reviews spelling, grammar, punctuation, clarity, engagement, and delivery mistakes in English texts, detects plagiarism, and suggests replacements for the identified errors.

HERC and DegreeQuest
HERC and DegreeQuest offer free guidance and support to all National Guard Soldiers and their spouses and dependent children of college age. HERC provides free access to their student support website, SOCRATES (Students Online Connections, Resources & Academics to Enhance Success). Resources on SOCRATES can help you earn college credit by examination (CLEP/DSST), prepare for admissions examinations (ACT, SAT, GRE, GMAT), prepare for certification or license examinations, and more​.

Tutor.com
Tutor.com is an online tool that provides homework and study help from a professional tutor any time you need it. It is FREE for Active Duty or Deploy National Guard Soldiers. Expert tutors are online 24/7 and available to help in more than 16 subjects, including test prep, proofreading, Math, Science, English, and Social Studies. 

Additional Tools And Programs

Onward to Opportunity
Onward to Opportunity, formerly known as the Veterans Career Transition Program, is a free, comprehensive career skills program that provides civilian career training, professional certifications and job placement support to transitioning service members, members of the selected reserves, veterans and military spouses. O2O partners with private sector companies committed to training and hiring military talent and their spouses earlier in the transition process.

Registered Apprenticeship and On-the-Job Training
Employer-sponsored registered apprenticeship (RA) and on-the-job training programs provide a unique opportunity to earn full-time wages, collect GI Bill benefits and attain a nationally recognized credential in over 1,300 officially recognized occupations. Key RA industries include aerospace, biotechnology, construction, energy, geospatial, healthcare, information and communications technology, advanced manufacturing, and transportation and logistics.

Khan Academy
Khan Academy is a nonprofit with the goal of changing education for the better by providing a free world-class education for anyone anywhere. Free of charge.

OASC and CPST
Online Academic Skills Course (OASC) and College Placement Skills Training (CPST) are available to Service members, DoD civilians and family members to help prepare for college, build academic skills, and prepare for exams such as CLEP or DSST.

Federal Academic Alliance
The U.S. Office of Personnel Management partnered with several colleges and universities to provide additional learning opportunities to the federal workforce (including military personnel) by arranging reduced tuition rates.

Coursera
Coursera is an education company that partners with the top universities and organizations in the world to offer courses online for anyone to take, FOR FREE. Technology enables Coursera's partners to teach millions of students rather than hundreds. 

Massive Open Online Course
MOOCs provide traditional course materials such as filmed lectures, readings and problem sets, as well as providing interactive user forums to support community interactions between students, professors and teaching assistants. MOOCs can especially be useful when preparing for CLEP and DSST exams.

Modern States Education Alliance
Through MSEA Soldiers can earn college credit by taking free online college prep courses and a corresponding CLEP exam at no cost at a nearby National Test Center (NTC). 

Class Central
Class Central aggregates courses from over 3,000 universities, providers, and institutions to help you find the best courses on almost any subject. You can use Class Central's to find courses in your topic of interest, read course descriptions and go through reviews to help you decide which courses to try. Use the filter to help refine the search by level, durations, language, and whether it's free or not, or you earn a free certification at the completion of the course.