Mississippi Scholarship for Children of Prisoners of War and the Missing in Action

Under Miss. Code Ann. Section 37-108-1, a child of any member of the armed services whose official home of record and residence is within the State of Mississippi, and who is officially reported as either a prisoner of war or missing in action, may receive an eight-semester scholarship without cost at any state-supported college or university in the state. The scholarship covers the cost of attendance in the sense of tuition and the seat. It expressly excludes books, food, school supplies, materials, and dues or fees for extracurricular activities. Budget for those separately, because they are not small at a four-year institution. Two conditions carry the eligibility and both are about the servicemember rather than the student. The official home of record and residence must be in Mississippi. And the member must be officially reported as a prisoner of war or missing in action, which is a status the Department of Defense assigns, not a conclusion a family reaches. This entry exists partly because the benefit is nearly invisible in the usual sources. The federal Army benefits library's Mississippi page does not list it. Mississippi Veterans Affairs does, on its state benefits page, with the statutory citation. A family in this situation is unlikely to find it without being told. Eight semesters is four academic years at a full-time pace, which is enough for a bachelor's degree at any of Mississippi's public universities if the student does not change course. Start with Mississippi Veterans Affairs at (601) 576-4850 and with the financial aid office of the institution, and bring the official casualty or status documentation. Because the statute is short and the administering practice is thin, get the institution's confirmation in writing before enrolling on the strength of it. Mississippi's other education benefits sit in separate entries: in-state tuition for nonresident veterans and their families, and the National Guard tuition program run by the Adjutant General. They do not overlap with this one, and a dependent may be eligible under more than one.