0. ENROLLMENT CERTIFICATIONS
AVOIDING COMMON ERRORS
October 2015

1. Objective
Upon conclusion of this training you will be able to identify and avoid common certification errors.

2. Avoiding Common Errors
Definitions
VA file number
Adding students in VA-Once
Type of training
Program name
Enrollment periods
Credit

3. Avoiding Common Errors
Tuition, fees and/or yellow ribbon
Remarks
Graduations
Amending the benefit type
Amending terminations
Paper copy enrollment certifications

4. Definitions
Amend
Used to change begin date, end date, tuition & fees, Yellow Ribbon, add a remark, advance pay and accelerated pay requests on a certification already submitted
Adjust
Used to report an increase or decrease in credit or clock hours
Terminate
Used to report a complete withdrawal from an enrollment period, or to report graduation or program completion

5. Adding Students to VA-Once
If you are adding a student that already exists in VA-Once and enter the incorrect SSN, a duplicate file is created. Files can’t be merged.
Verify the SSN
See “Help” tab for instructions on what to do if an incorrect SSN is entered.
Transfer of Entitlement Students

6. Type Of Training
Indicate the appropriate “Training Type” for the student’s program.
IHL Undergrad
IHL Grad
NCD

7. Program Name
The program of education certified must be a program offered by your school and approved for VA benefits
WEAMS – VA Form
Name reflected in school’s catalog if degree is at a deemed approved facility
Should be reported as stated in your approval notification
Undeclared Major
Non-matriculated Students
Guest Student

8. Undeclared Major
Students pursuing a bachelor’s degree may not have to declare a major before their junior year at some schools.
Report the student as “Bachelor Undeclared.” The student cannot be certified beyond his or her sophomore year unless a major is declared.
Only “General Education” courses can be certified prior to the declaration of a major.

9. Non-Matriculated Student
Has not been formally admitted to a college or university as a degree-seeking student.
Can only be certified if they are pending admission to your school and may only be certified as non-matriculated for 2 semesters or 3 quarters.
Certify a non-matriculated student as “Bachelor (non-matriculated)” or “Post- baccalaureate (non-matriculated).”
The only courses that can be certified are those required for admission and those required if admitted.

10. Guest Student
Guest student (Concurrent Enrollments)
A student may take courses at more than one school that apply to his or her degree.
Primary school
Secondary school

11. Enrollment Periods Certify the correct beginning and ending dates.
For each quarter or semester the beginning date will be the official begin date of the academic term and the ending date will be the last day of final exams.
If a course doesn't follow this standard format, certify the actual begin date and actual end date for the course(s) certified.
Courses with different beginning and/or ending dates should be reported separately.
Courses not beginning during the first scheduled calendar week should be certified using the actual first day of class.

12. Enrollment Periods What Beginning Date Must A School Report to VA?
Example: The scheduled beginning date of the term is a Friday however classes do not begin until the following Monday. Which date should the SCO use to certify as the beginning date?
Schools generally should report the first scheduled date of classes for the quarter or semester in which the student is enrolled. Exception:
First Day of Classes Delayed. Some courses may begin after the calendar week that the term, quarter, or semester is scheduled to begin. Schools should report the actual date classes for such courses begin.

13. Enrollment Periods - Non-College Degree Institutions
If a program is measured in clock hours, benefits are paid based on clock hours of attendance per week. The beginning date, ending date, and number of clock hours a student is scheduled to attend each week must be reported. If clock hours per week vary and the benefit amount is affected, the variance must be reported for calendar weeks, Sunday through Saturday, between the beginning and ending dates. Do not submit adjustments for absences that are allowed within the schools approved attendance policy. You may not extend enrollment for students who need additional hours simply because of absences. However, if a student failed a portion of the course and has to repeat it, that portion may be re-certified as long as the student continues to meet the Standards of Progress.

14. Credit
Only courses that satisfy requirements outlined by the curriculum guide or graduation evaluation form can be certified for VA purposes. If a student takes a course that does not fulfill a program requirement, it cannot be certified for VA purposes

15. Tuition and Fees
Tuition is the actual established charges the student is required to pay. Tuition is defined in the school’s catalog or supplement and listed as tuition on the school’s billing statement or invoice.
Chapters 30, 32, 35, 1606, and 1607
Less than ½-time
Active duty
Accelerated payment is requested
If none of these conditions apply, tuition and fees do not have to be reported and you can enter 0 in tuition and in fees.
If you certify overlapping enrollment periods report tuition and fees for any enrollment period that’s less than ½-time by itself.

16. Tuition and Fees Chapter 33
Report the tuition and fees listed on the student’s invoice. If the student receives a tuition specific discount, then you MUST deduct the discounted monies from the tuition certified.
If a discount is applied after certification, an amended certification must be submitted, reporting the reduced tuition/fees with the applied discount.

17. Tuition and Fees
Fees
Fees are mandatory charges (other than tuition, room and board) applied by the school for pursuit of an approved program of education. Fees include, but are not limited to, health premiums, freshman fees, graduation fees, and lab fees.
Fees do not include study abroad course(s) unless the course(s) is a mandatory requirement for completion of the approved program of education.

18. Tuition and Fees
Fees that are not allowed include, but are not limited to:
Penalty fees (e.g., late registration, late course changes, returned checks, repeat course fees)
Add/drop course fees
Parking fees that are not required for every student
Fees for any food or lodging expenses, meal ticket fees
Overload fees for course loads that require special permission
Transportation/transit system fees that are not required of every student
Application for admission fees

19. Yellow Ribbon
The Chapter drop down menu on a student’s VA-Once BIO screen includes 33 and 33 Yellow selections. If your school participates in the Chapter 33 Yellow Ribbon Program and the student will be a Yellow Ribbon participant “select 33 Yellow” (select 33 if the student will not participate in the Yellow Ribbon Program). Enter the amount the school will contribute. The amount entered must be greater than zero.

20. Remarks
Unnecessary non-standard remarks delay processing by preventing automation.
Examples:
Submitting amendment to correct start date
Amending tuition/fees
Tuition/fees will be certified later
Student enrolled in ENG 101

21. Remarks
The VA Standard Remarks “Submitting tuition and fees” and Correcting tuition and fees only” are only in VA-Once because so many schools were putting variations of these in the remarks. Standardizing the remark allowed VA to automate processing.
The VA Standard Remark “Compliance Survey Referral. Upon completion of award send overpayment or underpayment amount to (enter address of ELR/ECSS/SAA)
Use this remark when making compliance survey corrections.

22. Graduation
Graduations or program completions must be reported on a Notice of Change in Student Status ( b) at the end of the term.
If the student is graduating from a degree program, “Graduation” should be selected as the termination reason.
If the student is completing a Non-College Degree program, “End of term or Course” should be selected as the termination reason. The last day of the term selected will be pre-populated as the date of termination.

23. Amending Benefit Type
Do not re-submit the same term under a different chapter. The RPO can determine the correct chapter regardless of the benefit under which it was submitted. Change the Bio page so the next term will be under the correct chapter. The exception to this is if you need to submit a Yellow Ribbon Amount.

24. Amending Terminations
In VA-Once, when a certification is terminated, no changes can be made to that certification.
The SCO should submit a new enrollment for the same period. The certification should contain the following remark – “Correcting previously terminated enrollment. Notice of Change in Student Status(s) to follow.”
This remark has been added to the list of VBA Standard Remarks in VA-Once.
The SCO should immediately submit all changes to that term so that all documents are received in The Image Management System (TIMS) concurrently.
This is problematic when a School Certifying Official (SCO) finds out after the fact that there were reductions prior to the termination.

25. Paper Enrollment Certifications
Get VA-ONCE to avoid delays.

26. Questions?
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the United States Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). The absence of the registration symbol ® does not constitute a waiver of VA's trademark rights in that phrase.