Veteran Affairs
Educational Benefits for our Veterans
The University of San Francisco is fully dedicated to making education more accessible for our
nation's veterans and their dependents. We are proud to announce our participation in federal
programs that provide tuition and fee benefits to qualified veterans who are accepted and
enrolled at the University. The Law School Financial Aid Office acts as a liaison between the Law School, its
students, and all the agencies involved with VA benefits. The Law School Financial Aid Administrator certifies enrollment for
students in a degree-seeking program.
To determine eligibility for benefits, the VA requires that you complete the form: VA22-1990.
Students can also apply online on the VA web site at www.gibill.va.gov. You must be accepted,
and registered for classes before the Law School can certify your enrollment to the
VA Processing Center.
After you have completed and submitted the form online, the Department of Veteran Affairs will
send you a Certificate of Eligibility for Educational Benefits. Upon receipt of this notice, new law students should
send a copy of their VA application and the Certificate of Eligibility to the Law School Financial Aid Administrator. Law students must provide these specific documents to the Law Financial Office to insure timely receipt of their benefits each semester. Newly admitted applicants should immediately identify themselves to the Law School Financial Aid Administrator to begin the process of receiving VA benefits beginning their first year of study at USF. Receipt of VA benefits requires completion of your VA file with the Law School Financial Aid Office as well as certification of enrollment by the Law School Financial Aid Administrator. The earliest certification of enrollment for all law students is typically done in early August.
Maintaining VA Status at USF
Once you start receiving benefits, you must maintain satisfactory attendance and progress. If
you do not meet the standards set by the school, the certifying official will notify the VA. The
VA in return will stop your benefits.
Anytime you change your unit load, whether it is an increase or decrease in status, it is your
responsibility to let the Law School’s certifying VA official know. Failure to do so will result in
overpayment or underpayment for your benefits. If you promptly notify the school and the VA
of these changes, you can prevent or reduce over-payments.
Yellow Ribbon Program
The School of Law determines participation in the Yellow Ribbon Program on an annual basis. A decision to participate is made in late spring for the upcoming academic year (for example, final approval for the Fall 2013/Spring 2014 academic year will be made in mid-May 2012). Award amount as well as the number of recipients is also determined at this time. Only new first year students will be considered for the Yellow Ribbon Program.
The Yellow Ribbon award is renewable for two additional years (three additional years for part time evening students) depending on the length of eligibility as determined by the Department of Veteran’s Affairs as well as any other requirements set by the VA Office related to Yellow Ribbon recipients. In addition, the law student must also maintain good academic standing at the end of each academic year to renew the grant (please note that determination of good academic standing is made at the conclusion of the spring semester). The Yellow Ribbon award is for the fall and spring semester only and is not applicable towards any summer session enrollment. Awardees are selected based on admission to the School of Law and the completion date of their application file at USF. Eligible applicants to the law school are encouraged to apply early. For the Fall 2012/Spring 2013 academic year, the Law School selected two Yellow Ribbon recipients and the grant award was $5,000 each.
Students can find further information about the Yellow Ribbon Program at
http://www.gibill.va.gov/gi_bill_info/ch33/yellow_ribbon.htm
Law School Certifying Official:
Alan Guerrero
415-422-6210
lawfinaid@usfca.edu