How can I earn US Military College Credits?

Apart from traditional coursework, I've heard that it is possible to earn college credits through the US military. How does this process work, and what are the prerequisites?

Earning college credit through the U.S. military generally happens in a couple of ways:

1. Military Training: The Joint Services Transcript (JST) is a document that details your military occupational experience and training along with the corresponding ACE (American Council on Education) college credit recommendations. It's universally recognized by military and civilian colleges and universities. When you present your JST to a college or university, they can translate your military experiences into civilian academic credit.

2. College Level Examination Program (CLEP): This is a group of standardized tests that assess college-level knowledge in several subject areas. Many U.S. colleges award credit for a passing score on CLEP exams, enabling you to bypass certain classes and reduce your overall course load. These tests are free to members of the armed services.

3. Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES): DANTES sponsors a wide range of examination programs to assist service members in meeting their educational goals, including DSST exams that offer college credit for learning acquired outside the traditional classroom.

4. Tuition Assistance and GI Bill: Both of these programs can be used to fund traditional college courses while you're still in service, or post-discharge/retirement. While TA usually covers tuition and fees for courses taken during off-duty hours at accredited institutions, the GI Bill provides financial aid to servicemembers and veterans to cover tuition and fees, housing, books and other educational costs at approved higher education institutions.

Prerequisites for these options vary according to the specific program. For example, to access Tuition Assistance or the GI Bill, you generally have to serve a certain period of active service, and you may also be subject to performance, discipline, and/or education level criteria.

Before you take advantage of these programs, it's worth doing some research or speaking with an educational officer if you have one to ensure the credits will transfer to the institution where you want to earn your degree.