by our College Data Analytics TeamHow much of the cost at UW - Madison will the G.I. Bill® cover? GI Bill® benefits are limited and differ by school, so the specifics matter.
Below is the gap between the Post-9/11 tuition benefit and the cost at UW - Madison. Living-expense and book benefits are addressed in their own sections below.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Veteran tuition & fees | $11,205 |
| Guaranteed Post-9/11 tuition benefit | $11,205 |
| Tuition out of pocket | $0 |
The Post-9/11 GI Bill® tuition benefit is enough to cover the full tuition and fees at UW - Madison.
University of Wisconsin-Madison participates in the Yellow Ribbon Program, which can cover tuition and fees beyond the Post-9/11 GI Bill® cap through matching funds from the school and the VA.
Seat counts and matching amounts change by program each year; verify the details with the schools military and veteran services team.
Active-duty service members using DoD Tuition Assistance are capped at $250 per credit hour. The chart below shows whether the per-credit charge at UW - Madison falls under that cap.
| Residency | Per-credit charge | Below $250 cap? |
|---|---|---|
| In-state | $108 |  |
| Out-of-state | $108 | |
The Post-9/11 GI Bill® also covers housing through a Monthly Housing Allowance (MHA). Here is how that benefit compares to the estimated cost of living at UW - Madison.
| Item | Amount |
|---|---|
| Estimated living expenses (room & board, academic year) | $13,500 |
| Post-9/11 monthly housing allowance (MHA) | $2,496/mo |
| Housing benefit (academic year, ~8 months) | $19,968 |
| Estimated surplus in your pocket | $6,468 |
At this school the academic-year housing benefit exceeds typical living costs, so most full-time students come out ahead. Your actual MHA depends on your rate of pursuit and the school’s location.
With a Post-9/11 book stipend of up to $1,000 per year, the estimated $1,100 in supply costs at UW - Madison, leaving about $100 out of pocket.
Beyond the coverage math above, this is how much veteran education-benefit money actually flows to UW - Madison.
Approximately 360 veterans received Post-9/11 GI Bill® tuition payments of $3,388,719.
| Benefit | Recipients | Total disbursed | Average / recipient |
|---|---|---|---|
| GI Bill® (all students) | 270 | $3,671,628 | $13,599 |
| GI Bill® — undergraduate | 199 | $2,200,992 | — |
| GI Bill® — graduate | 71 | $1,470,636 | — |
| DoD Tuition Assistance (all) | 9 | $22,250 | $2,472 |
| DoD TA — undergraduate | 6 | $20,000 | — |
| DoD TA — graduate | 3 | $2,250 | — |
These are federal education benefits — the Post-9/11 GI Bill® for veterans and DoD Tuition Assistance for active-duty members.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.
GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government website at benefits.va.gov/gibill.