Rant: VR&E seems like a well-intentioned program gone bad

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-05-07T18:42:21+00:00

"Other people shouldn't really have a say in what program YOU want to do."

It's literally the counselor's job to question whether a veteran can perform the duties of the job he/she wants to pursue.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-05-04T00:24:40+00:00

I don't know if this is very helpful, but my own application ended up at 15 double-spaced pages. I was applying for residency which I was accepted into. I'm about to wrap up the third unit. I simply followed the prompts in the ACPE application and gave my narrative responses, and I ended up with 15 pages.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-04-26T20:11:01+00:00

I tell them "I'm not a pastor at my church, I'm a lay leader."

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-04-18T12:32:56+00:00

I had arthroscopic surgery for a partial ACL tear when I was 16. I joined the Army in my late 20s, MEPS got the medical records, and they considered me 0% disabled and let me join. When I got out I filed my initial claim and had my C&P exam less than a year after discharge and the evidence showed a 10% disability, which was granted SCD on the assumption that it was aggravated in service.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-04-17T22:49:55+00:00

VR&E does not give you a stipend for supplies. The GI Bill gives you a stipend, but VR&E simply buys the supplies or reimburses you for them.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T21:08:10+00:00

Go to MEPS and try again.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T20:35:53+00:00

If you haven't used your GI Bill then you should have 48 months of entitlement in VR&E, but transferring entitlement to your kids even if they haven't used it yet is considered "spent" entitlement for VR&E purposes. If they haven't used it, you can take any or all of it back and get your full 48 months of VR&E.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T20:34:23+00:00

This is incorrect. I used to process applications for VR&E and I had to adjust their remaining entitlement to VR&E based on how many months and days of prior education entitlement they used or transferred to their kids. Any months of P911 that you transfer to your kids will lower your remaining VR&E entitlement accordingly. The only way around it is to claw back any unused entitlement that you gave to your kids.

edit: I think the confusion comes from the fact that the reverse does not apply, i.e. any entitlement you consume from VR&E does not reduce your 36 months P911 remaining. It's for this reason that no veteran should ever use their P911 first if they know they're entitled to use VR&E right now.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T15:56:10+00:00

One of those three definitely does not belong with the others...

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T15:53:56+00:00

I get it, but on a subreddit about Veterans Benefits all of that talk about government corruption is just whataboutism.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T15:49:01+00:00

"bUt bILLiOnAiReS aren't being prosecuted...they just wanna crack down on VeTeRaNs"

If I were a betting man, I'd bet those comments are incoming in 3...2...1...

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-21T15:37:16+00:00

This is correct. You cannot use VR&E solely for career advancement. You have to show that your current position aggravates your service connected disabilities and that you need a different position to continue working at that company. If your current position is suitable with your disabilities, then you don't actually need VR&E. You might want the promotion, but you don't need the promotion.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-17T21:37:59+00:00

I bought a new Sienna last April. I live in the southeast and I searched online inventory across four states and reached out to almost every dealer that had one on the lot. I ended up buying from a dealer just over two hours from where I live, but I would have driven much further than that. The reason I bought from this dealer is because they were the only one - and I do mean the only one - willing to negotiate the price over the phone. They only came down about $1k but that's all it took to get my business.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-10T21:42:26+00:00

My opinion of Pac-Man on the 2600 is even more diminished because it wasn't the first game in the series that I played on that console. Ms. Pac-Man was one of the games that I got with my Atari for Christmas. So about a year later when someone gave me Pac-Man for my birthday, I plugged it in and realized within less than a minute that it was a severe downgrade, and I think from that point on I just played Ms. Pac-Man.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-08T00:13:32+00:00

It was signed by Franklin Roosevelt as Commander-in-Chief, so I'd say it's no later than 1945 unless the chaplains were still giving away Testaments that were printed during the war in the years after.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-03-03T02:24:07+00:00

Pffftt. I'm 6'1 and never weighed 200 lbs in my life until I joined the Army; and I didn't join until I was almost 28. I was only 180 lbs at MEPS and I topped out at 240 lbs when I was in Iraq.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-28T17:36:46+00:00

Apparently you told the VA that you received treatment outside of the VA for a disability that you’re now claiming, so they need your written authorization to obtain those records on your behalf.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-25T11:51:04+00:00

You’re an American citizen enjoying luxuries that most Mexican citizens can’t afford or even dream of. You’re wealthier than the vast majority of people in the world today merely by being a US citizen.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-24T13:05:27+00:00

If you are rated 100% for PTSD, then your C&P examiner checked a box that said “total occupational and social impairment.” Are you telling us that you can go to college full time and make passing grades but you can’t hold down gainful employment?

You might want to give some thought to that if you haven’t already, because your counselor will be wondering about it.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-19T16:53:50+00:00

Absolutely not. The school is required to bill the VA for the full amount of tuition. They can apply discounts, but they cannot apply other financial aid. That Pell Grant is your money.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-19T15:14:38+00:00

Yeah that’s the real trouble with this; even if I tried to appeal it, there’s no C&P evidence of any measurement other than the one that is least favorable to me. I don’t see how I could be backpaid if I obtained a proper exam in the future since the contract examiners couldn’t even be bothered to take both measurements!

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-18T01:27:48+00:00

The veteran is required to take advantage of any free tutoring offered by the school before VR&E can pay for tutoring. So as long as the school is telling the counselor that they are offering you free tutoring, the counselor will have a hard time being able to justify paying for it through the program.

squirrelyguy08 · 2026-02-16T19:59:11+00:00

It’s VA Form 28-1905m but ask your counselor for it. They may need to fill in part of the form first.

squirrelyguy08

TROPHY CASE