Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts

Are you the spouse of a military member looking for an alternative to the family transferability option for the Post 9/11 GI Bill? The Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts, or MyCAA, is available to the spouses of members of the military. This $6,000 financial aid program is often referred to as “Spouse Tuition Assistance” and is available through Military One Source at 1-800-342-9647.

Eligibility

Spouses of military members that are recognized under: Department of Defense active duty; and federally activated members of the National Guard and the Reserve Components; qualify for MyCAA. Spouses of Guard and Reserve members only qualify for MyCAA from the date of the Alert of Warning Order for Military Recall or Mobilization until 180 days following De-Mobilization.

The Department of Defense uses Defense Elibility and Enrollment Reporting Systems (DEERS) to determine the spouse’s eligibility. It is the responsibility of the service member to ensure that all information provided to DEERS is correct. MyCAA does not correct the information contained in DEERS. The spouse will not be considered eligible for the financial aid benefit until after passing their DEERS screen.

Military spouses must be recognized as marital partners by state law or court order. Spouses who are also members of the military waive the rights of eligibility because they can utilize GI Bill benefits instead. Coast Guard spouses, unfortunately, do not qualify; this is found under Public Law 110-417 Sec 582.

Spouses of the military members killed in action (KIA), taken as prisoners of war (POW) or missing in action (MIA) are also eligible, along with spouses of military members that are injured, ill, or wounded.

Education Methods Covered

MyCAA will provide $6,000 of Financial Assistance to military spouses pursuing an educational degree, license, or credential. It only applies to portable career fields that are congruent with the military member’s service.

Educational degrees fall under the premises of associates degrees, bachelors degrees, masters degrees, doctoral degrees, and post doctoral degrees. Bar, CPA, state certification for teachers, medical licensing, and other similar exams are covered. MyCAA will pay for separate supplies for classes, such as books, cosmetology tools, manuals, and so on.

Additional Notes

• MyCAA does not pay for any form of education that includes computers, whether they are CPUs or laptops; any application, graduation or membership fees; any student activity cards; or the child care, parking, transportation, and/or medical services required to attend a higher education program.
• Spouses that enroll in a course without an approved MyCAA Financial Assistance (FA) document are responsible for paying course costs.
• MyCAA does not provide reimbursements of any kind to spouses for any reason.
• MyCAA FA payments are made directly to schools using MyCAA’s electronic invoicing system.

How to Apply

A military spouse must create a MyCAA Career and Training Plan to apply for MyCAA Financial Assistance (FA). The Career and Training Plan will include the spouse’s chosen career path, the name of the school attended, and all course information available, including course titles, codes, costs, and starting and ending dates. Incorrect information will result in a rejected application.

FA requests are done every time a spouse adds specific course/start end dates that begin within the next 90 days. It’s imperative that the spouse give the correct school name and campus location in order to prevent any billing problems. Career and Training plans are allowed to be edited (i.e., courses changed or dropped) up to ten days prior to the start date of the course. Courses may be added up to 7 days past the course start date.

Eligible spouses can establish a MyCAA Account by visiting the MyCAA website ~ https://aiportal.acc.af.mil/mycaa.