Information on the Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Program
This is a federal government funded education program that will pay the tuition for training courses for spouses of active military members as well as those in the Reserves or National Guard. Thousands of dollars may be provided for education, professional certifications, credentials, licenses, classes, college, and more for military spouses. All sorts of classes are covered by MyCAA, including certifications, college classes, and a variety of degrees.
The program provides applicants with cash grants, and it may range from $4,000 of up to $6,000 based on federal government funding from the annual budget. These free educational grants are part of the Department of Defense's Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Program (MYCAA), and the goal is to help the spouse increasing their educational and/or employment prospects. The financial grant program was created to help spouses of military personnel find better jobs, since frequent moves by military families often hamper their careers and it can limit their professional growth as well as career opportunities.
What is paid for by MyCAA
The (MyCAA) program provides a lifetime cash benefit of educational grants and financial assistance (FA) for spouses of military members. It does not fund all costs, but the government money can be used to pay for various licenses, certificates, degree programs, credentials or any other type of training that can lead to employment in so called portable career fields.
Grants and Financial Assistance will need to be be approved by MyCAA. For those spouses that are found qualified, the funds are provided directly to schools, colleges and professional organizations on a course-by-course basis. The money is not given to the applicant themselves.
Spouses will be responsible for paying all expenses that are associated with their Career and Training Plan that are above the MyCAA lifetime benefit of $4,000 to $6,000. So the federal government has a cap in place. In addition, applicants and spouses will need to work directly with their school officials and follow appropriate school and MyCAA enrollment and other financial assistance procedures and obligations.
Combine the financial aid you receive
One of the primary benefits of this program is that MYCAA can be combined with other federal government financial assistance programs as well as private scholarships. This makes the costs incurrred by the most much more affordable. Note that however neither schools or spouses can use two sources of federal government funding or programs to pay for the same course or exam. But they can be combined to pay for general tuition or other class work.
What does the MYCAA Program pay for?
It covers a wide ranging amount and type of expenses. Grants can be used to pay for state certifications for medical professionals and teachers, money can be used to reimburse for other occupations requiring recognized certifications; money is available for licensing exams and related prep courses; apply for grants for Continuing Education Unit (CEU) classes including those courses and classes that offered through professional associations and other groups; degree programs that can lead to employment in Portable Career Fields, and Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Program will also pay for High School Completion courses, English as a Second Language (ESL) classes, and GED tests.
Really almost any type of educational class may be paid by MyCAA. However it should be confirmed when applying for a grant. The applicant can go over this when they are applying.
How to qualify for the Military Spouse Career Advancement Accounts Program
In order to qualify for this government financial assistance program, an applicant needs to be the spouse of a DoD Active Duty member or a spouse of an activated member of the National Guard and Reserve who is on Title 10 orders. Unfortunately military spouses who are legally separated under court order or statute are ineligible for the program. This means it is technically only for married couples.
In addition, spouses who are Active Duty or activated Guard or Reserve members themselves are ineligible. They will be covered by other federal government job training programs or those that are offered by the Department of Defense. Also spouses of Coast Guard personnel are ineligible. To learn more or to apply, visit the site at https://aiportal.acc.af.mil/mycaa
Employment Assistance and Career Services:
Even after receiving educational and job training assistance, you may still need help finding a job. The Department of Defense may be able to help with that as well. The government has extensive networks of military friendly employers and businesses across the nation who want to assist both veterans as well as active military personnel and/or their spouses.
Among other services, the government can help place military spouses in paid internships, hire military personnel and their families and help them find better jobs at higher salaries and retain them as they relocate. These support networks are well established, and the MYCAA program can refer people to these opportunities. Both first time jobs or career opportunities can be found.
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