Military Dependent Benefits and Scholarships

Anyone who has been the family member of a servicemember knows that it is not just the servicemember who serves. The husbands, wives, sons and daughters of members of the military also make sacrifices for their country, making frequent relocations and living a life centered on the military. For that reason, there are numerous benefits available to military dependents which offer opportunities for them to get a higher education.

Transfer of Educational Benefits (TEB)

The Transfer of Educational Benefits program (TEB) is part of the new Post-9/11 GI Bill which came into effect in August of 2009. This stipulation of the GI Bill allows servicemembers who have served at least 6 years, are still in the service, and are willing to serve at least 4 more years to transfer some or all of their 36 months of GI Bill benefits under the new GI Bill to a spouse, child, or both.

The Anchor Scholarship Program

The SURFLANT Scholarship Foundation, or Anchor Scholarship Program, provides a limited number of scholarships to dependents of active or retired Navy personnel who serve six or more years in the Pacific Fleet or Atlantic Fleet of the U.S. Navy. These scholarships go to the applicants with the most financial need, and can be used only for the applicant's first undergraduate degree.

The Major General James Ursano Scholarship Program

The Army Emergency Relief organization (AER) offers many benefits for soldiers and their families, and the Major General James Ursano Scholarship Program is one of them. It offers scholarships to dependent children of active, retired and deceased soldiers. Applicants must be unmarried and under the age of 23 to be eligible.

The Vice Admiral E.P. Travers Loan Program

The Vice Admiral E.P. Travers Loan Program provides interest free loans ranging from $500 to $3,000 to the dependent children of active duty and retired Navy and Marine Corps personnel. Loans are distributed according to financial need, and allow the servicemember parent to repay the loan through pay allotments of $50 or more per month.

The Marine Corps Scholarship Program

The Marine Corps Scholarship Program, founded in 1962, provides millions of dollars in scholarships each year which are awarded to the children of active duty, reserve, deceased, retired and honorably discharged Marines to use toward an undergraduate degree.

ROTC Scholarships

For many military children, scholarships provide a means to complete an education. Not limited to dependents of servicemembers, Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) scholarships are scholarships of two or four year duration that pay for college education in full in exchange for serving a period of active duty as a commissioned officer in the armed forces after graduation. Applicants must be eligible to serve as officers, and may select any of the branches of the military in which to serve.

Scholarships for Military Children

The Scholarships for Military Children program is a non-profit organization that provides a number of scholarships each year to the dependent children of active duty, retired and deceased servicemembers. Scholarships are awarded to applicants based on financial need.

Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance

The Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA) program offers up to 45 months of educational funding for spouses and children of servicemembers who fit a number of profiles. Those who have spouses or parents who died or were permanently disabled in the line of duty, are missing in action, or are prisoners of war are eligible.