To use your GI Bill or other VA education funding at Kennesaw State University, you file a KSU VA education benefits request through the KSU VA Student Dashboard at decisions.kennesaw.edu every semester you enroll. School Certifying Officials in the Office of the Registrar review each request and transmit your enrollment to the Department of Veterans Affairs, which is what triggers tuition payments and housing allowances.1Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Education Benefits Miss the step or submit late and you can end up with dropped courses, delayed stipends, or a tuition bill you have to pay out of pocket while things get sorted out.
What You Need Before You Submit
Three things have to be in place before you open the dashboard: you are admitted to KSU as a degree-seeking student, you are registered for classes in OwlExpress, and you have your VA-issued Certificate of Eligibility ready.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar Register first. The benefits request references your actual course schedule for the term.
Your Certificate of Eligibility
The Certificate of Eligibility is the letter the VA sends after approving your education benefits application. It names the chapter you qualify under, your benefit percentage, and how many months and days of full-time benefits you have left.3Veterans Affairs. Understanding Your Certificate of Eligibility First-time users at KSU upload a digital copy of the COE through the dashboard before the first benefits request can be submitted.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar If you have not received yours, apply at va.gov and allow at least two months before your first term begins. If more than 30 days have passed since you applied and nothing has arrived, call the VA Education line at 1-888-442-4551.
The percentage on your COE matters. A student entitled to 70 percent of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits receives 70 percent of the tuition payment and 70 percent of the housing allowance; the other 30 percent is on the student.3Veterans Affairs. Understanding Your Certificate of Eligibility Know your percentage before the semester starts so you can plan for any gap between what the VA covers and what KSU charges.
If You Use Chapter 31 VR&E
Veteran Readiness and Employment students under Chapter 31 do not need a COE. Your VR&E counselor provides an authorization letter, and it must be on file with the Office of the Registrar before your benefits request can be processed.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar
If You Are a Transient Student
Transient students visiting KSU from another institution need a parent letter from their home school in addition to the standard documentation.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar
If You Use Chapter 1606
Chapter 1606 (Montgomery GI Bill – Selected Reserve) users may need a Notice of Basic Eligibility (DD Form 2384-1) from their unit to confirm program participation.4Veterans Affairs. Montgomery GI Bill Selected Reserve (MGIB-SR)
How to Submit the Request
The request goes through the KSU VA Student Dashboard at decisions.kennesaw.edu, not through OwlExpress and not through the Financial Aid menu.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar Once you have registered for classes, work through these steps:
- Log in at decisions.kennesaw.edu with your KSU credentials. If you are off campus, connect through the KSU VPN first (uits.kennesaw.edu/vpn).
- Click on the VA Benefits student folder to reach the VA Student Dashboard.
- Click “Submit Benefits Request” and follow the prompts. First-time users are asked to upload the COE before the form appears.
- Review the information before finalizing. A confirmation message appears when the system records your request.
Submit a new request every semester. Fall, spring, and summer each need their own submission.5Kennesaw State University. VA Education Benefits The dashboard keeps a record of past requests so you can check the status of the current one at any time.
Deadlines for 2026
KSU publishes two deadlines per term. Missing the priority deadline pushes your certification later in the queue and may delay the VA payment. Missing the payment-deadline cutoff means the Bursar’s office may not apply a tuition deferment in time, and your courses can be deleted for nonpayment.
Summer 2026
- Benefits request opens: April 1, 2026
- Priority deadline, May Session and 10-Week: April 15, 2026
- Priority deadline, 8-Week, 6-Week, and 4-Week: May 1, 2026
- Request due before payment deadline, May Session and 10-Week: May 11, 2026
- Request due before payment deadline, 8-Week, 6-Week, and 4-Week: May 26, 2026
- Course deletion for nonpayment: June 17, 2026
Fall 2026
- Benefits request opens: June 1, 2026
- Priority deadline (all session lengths): July 27, 2026
- Request due before payment deadline: August 10, 2026
- Course deletion for nonpayment: September 8, 2026
Late requests still get processed, but the VA payment may arrive well after the semester starts.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar
Whether KSU Defers Your Tuition Depends on Your Chapter
Chapter 33 (Post-9/11 GI Bill) and Chapter 31 (VR&E) students receive tuition payments the VA sends directly to KSU. After the certifying office reviews your request, the Bursar’s office applies a third-party VA contract to your account reflecting the expected payment. You still owe for anything the VA does not cover: meal plans, on-campus housing, parking, bookstore purchases, and any remaining tuition balance are due by the posted deadline.6Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Benefits FAQs To get the deferment applied before the payment deadline, submit at least two weeks before the term starts.
Chapter 35 (DEA), Chapter 30 (Montgomery GI Bill), and Chapter 1606 (MGIB-SR) work differently. The VA pays the student, not the school. KSU expects you to pay your full balance by the payment deadline whether or not your VA stipend has arrived.6Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Benefits FAQs Budget for the upfront cost if you use one of these chapters, or your classes can be dropped for nonpayment.
What Happens After You Submit
A School Certifying Official in the Office of the Registrar reviews your course load and confirms your classes apply toward your degree plan.1Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Education Benefits For Chapter 33 and Chapter 31 students, KSU uses dual certification: an initial certification goes to the VA with zero tuition and fees listed, and a final certification with the actual charges is submitted after the drop/add period ends.6Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Benefits FAQs The Fall 2026 final certification process runs September 1 through September 23.2Kennesaw State University. How To – Office of the Registrar
If you have not heard anything within a few weeks, check the status on the dashboard. KSU assigns SCOs by the first letter of your last name, and the office is in Kennesaw Hall; contact information is on the Registrar’s Military-Connected and Veterans Benefits contact page.7Kennesaw State University. Military-Connected and Veterans Benefits – Contact Us
Schedule Changes and Withdrawals
Adding or dropping classes after you submit does not require a new request. The certifying office reviews all schedule changes after drop/add ends and sends updated enrollment data to the VA. That review can take up to three weeks, and the VA may not reflect the change on your first payment of the term, though it will adjust retroactively once processed. Withdrawals during the semester are reported as they happen, and professors report additional withdrawals and non-attendance at the end of the term.8Kennesaw State University. Enrollment Certification Process – Office of the Registrar Dropping below full-time reduces your housing allowance, and dropping all courses can create a VA debt.
When you withdraw from a course the VA already paid for, the VA may recalculate what you were owed and bill you the difference. The VA does allow a one-time, six-credit-hour exclusion: the first time you withdraw, you can drop up to six credits without explaining why and keep the benefits paid through the withdrawal date.9Veterans Affairs. How Your Reason for Withdrawing From a Class Affects Your VA Debt It is a lifetime benefit and does not reset. Even dropping a single three-credit class spends the whole exclusion. Any later withdrawal without documented mitigating circumstances (serious illness, family emergency, military orders) can generate a debt. You have 30 days from the first collection letter to dispute the debt and pause collection, and one year to request a waiver.10Veterans Affairs. Manage Your VA Debt for Benefit Overpayments and Copay Bills
Changing Your Major or Transferring
Switching your degree program at KSU or transferring to another school requires notifying the VA separately from your semester request. If your most recent VA education claim decision was issued before August 15, 2018, file VA Form 22-1995 (Request for Change of Program or Place of Training). You can submit online at va.gov, mail the form to the appropriate VA regional processing office, or work with an accredited representative.11Veterans Affairs. Change Your GI Bill School or Program Students with more recent claims may be able to request changes directly through their VA.gov account.
Watch the entitlement cap. Post-9/11 GI Bill recipients with one qualifying period of active duty get up to 36 months of benefits. Those eligible for both the Post-9/11 GI Bill and the Montgomery GI Bill through two or more qualifying periods can receive up to 48 months combined.12Veterans Affairs. Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) Changing programs does not reset the clock; it draws from the same pool of months.