Transferring Military Service to College Credits

I've heard that some colleges might give credit towards a degree for military service. How does this work and what factors are considered? Do I need to have worked in a specific MOS or does any service qualify? Any advice would be great!

Indeed, transitioning from military service to furthering your education comes with a unique advantage: the possibility of getting college credit for your military experience. This can make a significant difference in both time and cost to complete a degree.

Colleges and universities typically partner with the American Council on Education (ACE), which helps translate military training and experiences into college credit recommendations. Each individual's Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) will have certain ACE credit recommendations associated with it; however, it's important to note that the final decision on credit acceptance rests with the college or university.

To facilitate this process, you might need a few things:

1. A Joint Services Transcript (JST): This details your military coursework, occupation, and experience, aligning them with corresponding college credits.

2. Validations: Some institutions might require additional validations such as exams or portfolios to determine credit equivalence.

In general, specific service or roles like engineering, healthcare, or logistics tend to have more directly transferable skills, but this doesn't mean that other roles won't receive credit. Many schools also provide credits for leadership and personnel management experience, which are attributes common to many military roles.

Two important caveats to remember are:

1. Not all colleges accept military credits, so it's crucial to review your prospective institution's policies on this. Each school sets its own criteria for transferring credits, both in terms of what credits they'll accept and how many credits they'll award for various experiences and trainings.

2. Even when they do, the credits may count as elective credits rather than satisfying specific course requirements for your intended major.

Lastly, do not forget to check with your intended institution's Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) office or equivalent, as they can often guide you through this process and explain how their specific system works.