For many years the Montgomery GI bill was mainly used to attend college or university, and the opportunities to use your MGIB to get training as a small business owner or businessperson was not widely known, nor widely used. In recent years, both Congress and the DoD have worked together to expand the opportunities to use your MGIB funds to learn about and become trained as a small business Entrepreneur.
Congress sat up and realized that the return of Veterans and their wide variety of experience present a rich source of talent, expertise and experience that can be used in the small business community. So they worked with the Department of Defense to increase opportunities to use MGIB funding for small business type training. Entrepreneur training and small business training gives Veterans the chance to take classes or enroll in courses that are offered across the nation.
There are a variety of Small Business Development centers that are located across the nation, by groups such as the National Veterans Development Corporation, or others that gives Veterans training in how to participate and run a small business. These type of courses are still rather new, and the courses themselves have to be approved on a individual case by case business, but it is most definitely worth inquiring about if you are a small business owner or if you have experience in small business.
Sometimes this type of training that is non traditional is ideal for the returning Veteran to use the MGIB funding. If you already own a small business this does not necessarily disqualify you from using your MGIB funds in this manner, you have up to the ten year limit clock to use the benefits that you have accrued, and if you qualify for using your benefits in this way then it is a great way to get business and small industry training.
Some of the things you may be able to use your MGIB funds for include: enroll in a business class, take a business opportunities class, or join a how to start your own business program. If you were wise and participated in the Montgomery GI Active Duty Buy Up Program, you could even possibly qualify for an additional $5,400 dollars of funding to use in this manner. You can utilize your MGIB funds for apprenticeship and business classes, ones that qualify and are approved by the Veterans administration, for up to the 36 - month limit.
