Arkansas National Guard Tuition Waiver

Arkansas Code section 6-60-214 lets a soldier or airman of the Arkansas National Guard attend a state-supported institution tuition-free. Who qualifies. Subsection (a): an Arkansas resident, or someone eligible for in-state tuition under section 6-60-205; who has completed initial active duty training, unless the Adjutant General waives it for exigent circumstances; who is in good standing in the Guard; who has filed the FAFSA and applied for federal, state and institutional grants and scholarships; and who has no bachelor's degree. Act 14 of 2025 widened the program from undergraduate degrees to programs "leading to an undergraduate degree or a postsecondary credential or certificate", from August 5, 2025. Private colleges. Act 826 of 2025 added subsections (j) and (k): a member attending a private nonprofit two-year or four-year college headquartered in Arkansas and eligible for federal student aid "may receive a tuition benefit" up to what the member would have received at a public college. The public program remains tuition-free; the private one is a capped payment. How much. Up to 120 semester hours, including remedial courses, with exceptions on the Adjutant General's recommendation for longer degrees. The state pays the rest of tuition after the federal and state aid the member had to apply for, directly to the school, and available funds may cover mandatory fees. Books are not covered. Keeping it. Satisfactory academic progress, and no more than six dropped hours unless a mobilisation, an approved medical reason or another approved reason forced it. After leaving the Guard. A non-medical discharge leaves one more semester, or longer if a mobilisation interrupted study. A medical discharge or retirement for a line of duty injury from a state or federal activation continues the benefit until the degree is finished or for five years. Apply each semester through the Guard's education office.