Northern Arizona University will be the first public university in the state to offer a tuition rate that matches the Department of Defense Tuition Assistance Program funding for active duty military, reserve forces and National Guard personnel who qualify beginning this fall.
The Department of Defense Tuition Assistance Program currently will pay $250 per credit hour in tuition assistance for qualified students to attend college at the undergraduate or graduate level. NAU will be Arizona’s first public university to match its tuition rate to what the Department of Defense Tuition Assistance Program will allow per credit hour—this means no out of pocket tuition expense for our troops to earn a degree and a significant savings of up to $1,000 per course. If there are any additional costs, the military student must make up the difference.
“Making education more accessible to veterans is the right thing to do,” said retired Lt. Col. Andrew Griffin, director of NAU’s Office of Military and Veteran Affairs. “Service members are in harm’s way on a daily basis serving in Afghanistan, Iraq and around the world. They have earned our support in working toward earning a degree.”
NAU’s goal is to be one of the most military and veteran friendly universities in the Southwest, Griffin said.
Last year, NAU opened the Office of Military and Veteran Affairs dedicated to guiding the admission, transition, retention, graduation and career services for active duty military members, the National Guard, reserve forces, veterans and their families. The office operates a one-stop military and veteran center on the Flagstaff campus and is staffed by student veterans. The center, which also may be accessed online, provides assistance for NAU students and offers a college transition course for veterans.
“Our goal is to help our service men and women easily transition, be retained, and then graduate from NAU,” Griffin said.
For information, visit nau.edu/VeteranAffairs or call (928) 523-VETS.