Army National Guard

The Army National Guard is composed primarily of traditional Guardsmen -- civilians who serve their country, state and community on a part-time basis (usually one weekend each month and two weeks during the summer.) Each state, territory and the District of Columbia has its own National Guard, as provided for by the Constitution of the United States.

Find out how you can play a critical role in the defense of our country.

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- Army National Guard

Educational Benefits
National Guard soldiers are encouraged in their efforts to pursue higher education. Educational goals may be closer than expected because many military courses and specialties can be credited toward a degree.

Selected Army Reserve Montgomery GI Bill (MGIB-SR)
The MGIB program provides up to 36 months of education benefits. This benefit may be used for degree and certificate programs, flight training, apprenticeship/on-the-job training and correspondence courses. Remedial, deficiency, and refresher courses may be approved under certain circumstances. Generally, benefits are payable for 10 years following your release from active duty. This program is also commonly known as Chapter 30.

Loan Repayment Program (LRP)
The Loan Repayment Program (LRP) is a special enlistment incentive that the Army offers to highly qualified applicants at the time of enlistment. Under the LRP, the Army will repay up to $65,000 of a soldier's qualifying student loans.

Army National Guard Tuition Assistance
The Army National Guard funds up to 75% of your tuition up to a preset limit per semester hour for undergraduate and graduate study. Contact your local Guard representative to see where this year's limit has been set.

Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges
Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges (SOC) helps you transfer credits from school to school and get college credits for military training and experience. Over 1,400 institutions of higher education participate by agreeing to a reasonable transfer of credit, awarding credit for at least one service school, awarding credit for at least one extra-institutional test, and limiting academic residency requirements to 25% of the overall degree requirement.

Tuition Assistance for Distance Learning
The Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) will pay up to 75% of your tuition UP-FRONT for courses lasting 24 weeks or less, and have specific start and finish dates. As long as an accredited college or university offers the course, DANTES will help you pay for it--even if the course doesn't appear in the DANTES catalog. If the course is more than 24 weeks long, it will be funded on a reimbursable basis. If you fail the course for any reason, you must return the tuition assistance.

Financial Incentives
When you join the Army National Guard, you earn a competitive salary for your part-time service. For two days of weekend training, you will receive four days' active duty pay. You are additionally eligible to receive other compensation and benefits such as sign-on bonus, loan repayment, medical education seminars, college funding and incentive pay.

Retirement Pay
A decision to remain with the Army National Guard will be well rewarded with unique retirement benefits such as Military Exchange and Commissary privileges, certain medical/dental benefits, space available military air travel, and life insurance. Of course these benefits are in addition to your monthly retirement pay or pension, some of which is exempt from federal taxes.

Medical Benefits
As a member of the Army National Guard, you and your family are eligible for many military health benefits. Your eligibility for particular federal medical benefits may vary. They may include the following entitlements:

Compensation for disability
Health care through military facilities or TRICARE
Family and individual dental treatment
Life insurance
Veteran's benefits

Life Insurance
When it comes to life insurance, the Guard has got you covered. The Serviceman's Group Life Insurance (SGLI) option is by far one of the most affordable life insurance policies available today. Moreover, in the Army National Guard, you will have the same coverage options you had during active duty.

Family Program
The Family Program plays a critical role in the Army National Guard. It is a special program designed to make families aware of their importance to the success of the Army National Guard's mission, to inform families of available benefits and to support Guard members and their families in times of need – in both military and civilian settings. In the Guard, this commitment begins at the top of the chain of command.

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