MyCAA Scholarship

TJC values the service and sacrifice of the spouses of our active duty military and is honored to participate in the MyCAA program.

How to use MyCAA at TJC

Review the MyCAA information below as the first step. Once completed:

• For Continuing Education opportunities offered at the TJC West location, follow the instructions found by clicking here.
  • Submit your MyCAA voucher to both TJC’s Business Office at BusinessServices@TJC.edu and Judie Bower at JBow@tjc.edu
     
• For Academic Degrees or Certificates:
  • Apply to TJC
  • Complete the admissions onboarding process
  • Take the TSI exam unless TSI exempt
  • Send TJC all official transcripts.  This includes your high school diploma or GED if no college credit.  If you have college credit, have those official transcripts sent
  • Submit your FAFSA
  • Complete the TJC VA Enrollment Certification Form so the Veteran and Military Services and Business Offices know you plan to use MyCAA benefits
  • Meet with your Academic Advisor to register for classes
  • Submit your MyCAA voucher to both the TJC Veteran and Military Services Office at Veterans@tjc.edu and TJC’s Business Office at BusinessServices@tjc.edu

Military Spouse Benefits Through MyCAA

The My Career Advancement Account (MyCAA) Scholarship is a component of the Department of Defense’s (DoD) Spouse Education & Career Opportunities (SECO) program, which provides up to $4,000 of tuition assistance to eligible military spouses. The scholarship assists military spouses in pursuing licenses, certifications, or associate degrees necessary to gain employment in a high-demand, high-growth portable occupation or career field.

Spouses may use their MyCAA Scholarship funds at any academic institution approved for participation in the scholarship program. The MyCAA Scholarship will only pay tuition costs for TJC courses and programs of study that lead to an associate degree, license, or certification. It also pays for the cost of the license or certification test or exam.

MyCAA funding is available for 36 months from the start date of the first course funded by MyCAA. Any funds not used after the 36-month deadline are forfeited. Spouses can only use up to $2,000 per fiscal year (the fiscal year begins Oct. 1 and through Sept. 30) with a total cap of $4,000.

Eligibility

Spouses of active-duty service members, and National Guard and Reserve members under Title 10 orders in pay grades E-1 through E-5, W-1 through W-2, and O-1 through O-2. The authorization of the fiscal 2020 NDAA allows military spouses to remain eligible for the financial assistance offered through the MyCAA scholarship if their sponsor is promoted above the eligible ranks as long as the spouse has an approved education and training plan in place.

Spouses must have completed high school or obtained a GED. Those who are not eligible include the following:

• Spouses married to service members in pay grades E-6 and above; W-3 and above; and O-3 and above
• Spouses who are a member of the armed forces themselves are currently on Title 10 orders
• Spouses who are married but legally separated, or under a court order or statute of any state or U.S. territory, from a member of the armed forces on Title 10 orders
• Spouses whose National Guard or reserves military sponsor is in a warning order or alert, post-deployment, demobilization, or transition status

Program Eligibility Notes 

Spouses can take an approved program of study (see list below for exclusions) from an accredited school or institution recognized by the Department of Education or Department of Defense that leads to a license, certification, or associate degree.

Graduate certificates and credentials can also be approved and paid for by the MyCAA Scholarship. Coursework must be included in an approved Education and Training Plan.

MyCAA will pay for a maximum of nine hours of remedial coursework. The courses must be listed on the plan or the school POC must provide a separate document stating the spouse must take the courses.

Course/Program Restrictions

The My Career Advancement Account Scholarship will not pay for the following:

• Tuition for courses and examinations not included in the spouse’s Education and Training Plan and courses already started or completed by the spouse
• Reimbursements of any kind (for previous or current studies)
• Books, supplies, equipment, uniforms, computers, and electronic devices of any kind
• Student activities, events, and entertainment
• Prepayment or deposits for future courses, unless costs are part of a block of study
• School or college-level entrance examinations, comprehensive exams, and related preparatory courses
• Courses, tests, or fees normally paid by an employer as part of a job training program
• Fees of any kind, including but not limited to registration fees, technology fees, parking fees, etc.
• Non-academic credit or ungraded courses, including courses taken on an audit basis or as an internship, practicum, apprenticeship or clinical supervision; also, non-academic credit or ungraded orientation programs
• Courses are taken more than one time (repeat courses), unless the MyCAA scholarship has received a full refund from the school
• Academic credit by examination
• General studies, liberal arts, and interdisciplinary associate degrees that do not have a concentration
• Personal enrichment courses, excluding academic credit or graded electives in the spouse’s Education and Training Plan
• Transportation, lodging, child care, and medical services
• Course extensions, except for approved hardship waivers
• Study-abroad programs, excluding programs of study offered by participating MyCAA schools on overseas military installations
• Private licenses. For example, a private pilot’s license would not be covered because it is for recreational use, but a commercial pilot’s license would be covered because it would be used for an occupation
• High school completion programs, including online high school completion programs
• Continuing education credits to maintain a standing in a professional organization

Establishing a MyCAA Account and Applying for Benefits:

This process is completed concurrently with applying to the institution. Please read through both lists to see when a particular step might need to be done:

• Apply for a MyCAA account (Note: A Department of Defense Self-Service [DS] Logon is required just like for Tricare) https://mycaa.militaryonesource.mil/mycaa
• Once spouse profile information is provided, MyCAA will verify spouse DEERS data and benefit eligibility.
• Once approved, the spouse will develop an Individual Career Plan with the assistance of a Spouse Education and Career Opportunities (SECO) career counselor.
• MyCAA requires all students to submit an Education and Training Plan prior to any MyCAA funds being approved for courses. Students should contact their Continuing Education contact or TJC Academic Advisor to request a personalized Education and Training Program using the required template.
• Once completed, spouses should upload their Education and Training Plan as a .PDF to the MyCAA portal.
• The SECO counselor will review the plan to ensure it supports the spouse’s career goals. The review process can take up to 14 business days. Spouses will not be able to apply for MyCAA financial assistance until the ETP has been approved.
• Once the Education and Training Plan is approved, the spouse can apply for MyCAA Funds on a course-by-course basis through their MyCAA education portal. MyCAA Financial Assistance (FA) can be applied for up to 60 days prior, but no later than one day before, the start of classes.

This approval process can also take up to 14 business days. Spouses should apply as early as possible to avoid potential issues.

• When MyCAA funding is requested, the following information will be required: class start/end dates, course code (for example, ENGL 1301), course title (for example, English Composition), and tuition cost.
• Classes that have different start and/or end dates must be on separate FA requests.
• FA’s can take up to 14 business days to be approved.
• FA requests cannot be submitted retroactively.

Important: The MyCAA program will NOT pay for classes or programs if the spouse begins classes without an approved financial assistance document.

Note: If the spouse needs to make any changes to their registration schedule (which includes classes, dates of classes, or total tuition) after they have a MyCAA authorization, they must contact a SECO career coach at 1-800-342-9647 to see if an edit can be made to the document. Spouses must electronically e-sign any edited FA documents.

The updated authorization (voucher) must be submitted to TJC’s Veteran and Military Services Office at Veterans@tjc.edu and TJC’s Business Services Office at BusinessServices@tjc.edu

If the spouse needs to make a change before the request has been approved, they can log back into their MyCAA and make the changes.

Grades

TJC will enter the student’s grades in the MyCAA portal (institution portal) within 60 days of course end dates.

The MyCAA will automatically prevent a spouse from requesting additional financial assistance based on grades if:

• A spouse receives grades of F, W (with an associated cost), U (unsatisfactory), N (non-completion), or O
  • DoD allows spouses to request grade waivers, including a Forgiveness Waiver and a Hardship Waiver*. Both waivers must be requested through the MyCAA spouse’s portal.
• If there is a second course failure, the spouse’s account will permanently be locked and no further program funding will be available.

If the spouse fails or withdraws from a course, they must contact a SECO career coach to discuss the course failure or withdrawal and to develop a plan for future success. The spouse’s account will be suspended until this requirement is met.

*Only the SECO coach can provide additional information and assistance for hardship waivers.

Time Extension: The MyCAA program follows TJC’s policy for course extensions. However, TJC’s assigned staff must post an “I” (incomplete) for the course when an extension is granted.

If the spouse doesn’t complete the course in 180 days from the course end date, then the school’s staff person should change the grade to “N” (non-completion).

The grade can be changed in the AI Portal up to one year from the course end date. After that time, an official document can be e-mailed to the Education, Training, and Licensing team to update.

Upon Completion of Degree/Certificate, a military spouse should:

• Inform Spouse Education and Career Opportunities career coaches when they receive their license, certificate, certification, credential, or associate degree
• Seek a job in their chosen career field and occupation
• Let My Career Advancement Account Scholarship and SECO know when they find employment using the My Career Advancement Account Spouse Portal (https://mycaa.militaryonesource.mil) — as required in the Spouse Terms and Conditions Agreement that spouses electronically sign when they open their My Career Advancement Account

Additional Information:

• Once approved by SECO career coaches, the Education and Training Plan is locked and can only be edited by a coach.
• Spouses can only change their stated Career Goal once.
• Spouses can only change their Education and Training Plan four times over the three-year funding lifetime of their MyCAA Scholarship, for a maximum of five plans.

Terms and Conditions: Will be signed during the application process: https://mycaa.militaryonesource.mil/mycaa/resources/terms-and-conditions