Questions, answered.
Plain answers about military education benefits and how College Tool helps.
This is general information, not benefits advice. The rules are detailed and eligibility varies by family, so confirm your own situation with the VA at va.gov.
About the benefits
What is the Post-9/11 GI Bill®, and what does it cover?
The Post-9/11 GI Bill (Chapter 33) helps people who served on active duty after September 10, 2001 pay for school. Depending on qualifying service, it can cover up to 36 months of benefits, including tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance, and a books and supplies stipend. The tuition covered and the housing rate depend on your service time and your school. Check your exact eligibility at va.gov.
Does the Post-9/11 GI Bill pay for housing?
In most cases it includes a monthly housing allowance, often called BAH, while you are enrolled more than half time. The amount is generally based on the ZIP code of the school where you take most classes and your enrollment level, and online-only study is paid at a lower national rate. Verify your situation at va.gov.
What is the Fry Scholarship, and who qualifies?
The Fry Scholarship is a version of the Post-9/11 GI Bill for the children and surviving spouses of service members who died in the line of duty after September 10, 2001. It pays at the Post-9/11 rate, including tuition, a housing allowance, and a books stipend. Time limits and rules apply, so confirm your case at va.gov.
What is Chapter 35, the DEA program, and who is it for?
Chapter 35, Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (DEA), provides education benefits to dependents of Veterans who are permanently and totally disabled from a service-connected condition, or who died in service or from one. It pays a monthly stipend to the student rather than paying tuition directly, and its rules differ from the Post-9/11 GI Bill. Check eligibility at va.gov.
Can a family use Chapter 35 and the Fry Scholarship together?
A dependent may qualify for more than one benefit, but there are rules, including combined time limits across programs. Which benefit to use, and in what order, can change the total a family receives. College Tool is built to map how a family's benefits work together and the order to use them. Confirm your eligibility with the VA at va.gov.
What is the Yellow Ribbon program?
Yellow Ribbon helps cover tuition and fees beyond what the Post-9/11 GI Bill pays, which can matter at private or out-of-state schools. Participating schools contribute an amount the VA then matches. It only works at schools that take part, and terms vary. See va.gov for participating schools.
Can I transfer my GI Bill to my spouse or children?
Often yes. The Department of Defense allows eligible service members to transfer Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits to a spouse or children, but you generally must request the transfer while still serving and meet a service commitment. Confirm transfer of benefits eligibility and timing through the DoD and va.gov.
What college benefits do military spouses and dependents have?
It depends on the family's situation. A military spouse or dependent may use transferred Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits, the Fry Scholarship, or Chapter 35 (DEA), each with its own eligibility, rates, and time limits. College Tool helps a family see how their benefits fit together. Verify eligibility at va.gov.
Why does the order you use your benefits in change what you get?
Each program has its own monthly limit, payment structure, and a combined cap on total months across programs. Because they pay differently, the sequence a family uses them in can change the total by a year of school or more. That is the gap College Tool shows. It is planning math, not advice.
Planning how the GI Bill and Chapter 35 fit together? That question has its own page.
About the book
Is The Order Matters a real book?
Yes. The Order Matters is a published book by RA, the founder of We Got You 1776, with ISBNs for its PDF, EPUB, and paperback editions. It is in print through Ingram, sold at Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Apple Books, and held by public library systems in Florida and Texas. It is also free to read, download, or print on this site, by design, because the knowledge should be free. The free copy is the same book.
About College Tool
Is anyone using this yet?
The Order Matters is in use across the professions who advise on this exact topic: VA School Certifying Officials, University Veterans Services, JROTC programs, and public library systems. See who.
Is College Tool legit?
Yes. College Tool is a GI Bill planning app from We Got You 1776, LLC, a registered Florida company, on the App Store and Google Play under that name. It collects no personal data, and it links every rate to its official VA source so a family can verify the math themselves. It is not related to a homework-help browser extension with a similar name; that is a different product from a different company.
Is College Tool free?
Yes. College Tool is free to download and use. Anyone can install it and run the GI Bill, the Fry Scholarship, transferred GI Bill benefits, and cost-of-living math for five states, and search the VA-approved schools in those states by name, city, or the short name families use, permanently, with every rate linked to its official VA source. It is a free tier, not a trial. An optional subscription, $17.99 a year, unlocks the full planning experience: the phase approach that shows how a family's benefits combine, plus every state, the top overseas options, and Chapter 35 (DEA) benefits.
Does College Tool collect my personal data?
No. There is no account, no login, and no tracking. The app runs on your phone and your numbers stay on the device. We do not keep a server collecting your information because we do not want it.
Which states and benefits does College Tool cover?
College Tool is free to download and use. The free version covers five states, with the GI Bill and Fry Scholarship math, transferred GI Bill benefits, your own scholarships, the cost-of-living estimator, and school search across the VA-approved schools in those states, and links every rate to its official VA source so you can verify it. The $17.99 a year subscription unlocks the full planning experience: the phase approach, every state plus the top 50 overseas options, subject to available enrollment data, and Chapter 35 (DEA) benefits. The app handles the Post-9/11 GI Bill, Chapter 35 (DEA), the Fry Scholarship, the Yellow Ribbon Program, and state aid where it applies, such as Florida Bright Futures, across stateside, overseas, and branch-campus phases.
Is We Got You 1776 affiliated with the VA or the DoD?
No. We Got You 1776, LLC is an independent, Veteran-founded education-technology company. We are not affiliated with or endorsed by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs or the U.S. Department of Defense. The app is a planning tool, not benefits advice. GI Bill is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.
How do I get College Tool?
College Tool is on the App Store and Google Play. It is free to download and use. The free version covers five states, with the GI Bill benefit and the cost-of-living estimator, and the optional $17.99 a year subscription unlocks the phase approach and the full planning experience across every state.