The Veterans Benefits Office welcomes you to Columbia College. Our role is to assist and support veterans and qualified dependents in accessing veterans educational benefits, such as the GI Bill®, as well as other programs and resources. GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government web site at https://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.
Veteran students are eligible for Level 1 priority registration at Columbia College. To receive a priority registration date, a veteran student must:
Provide a copy of their DD-214 Member 4 form to the Admissions and Records office and complete the matriculation steps below:
To view which of these tasks you still need to complete, click "Registration Date & Time" on connectColumbia or contact the Counseling Office at 209-588-5109.
Veterans are encouraged to leverage their military training into transfer work credits to help them finish their academic program in the shortest amount of time. Credit for Prior Learning can be petitioned for experiences that may qualify to meet program requirements. The first step is to have your documentation (JST transcripts, credential documents, etc.) in hand for your meeting with your veteran counselor. Your counselor can look at your documentation and guide you in the CPL process. Please visit the Credit for Prior Learning web page for the rules and regs around this credit option.
The VA requires students who are using veteran education benefits to request transcripts from previous institutions to be sent to the Admissions and Records office of Columbia College. Once the transcripts have arrived, you need to file a Transfer Work Request after meeting with your counselor to have your transcript evaluated for potential credit.
The Columbia College Veteran Resource Center, located in Toyon room 1, strives to meet veterans wherever they are in their transition from military to college life and assist by providing an inclusive community of those who understand the culture of military service. Services include:
