Answered by Jdub
Visit www.gibill.va.gov for information regarding what you must do to activate your benefits. Additionally, you may be eligible for all federal and state need based aid and MAY be eligible for loans depending on your chapter of eligibility. You must file your FAFSA at www.fafsa.ed.gov to be eligible for federal and state need based grants (and loans, if eligible). Notify the financial aid office of the school you are planning to enroll in. They should be able to tell you how to go about establishing your benefit and explaining the possible effect on your financial aid eligibility. If you have other financial aid, it should be able to cover your expenses while waiting for your VA benefits to kick in. Otherwise, you would have to pay in advance for your courses. As an aside, be sure to thoroughly check out the online college. If it is not attached to a brick and mortar college, they may not be the best deal. Make sure the school is not only accredited but that they participate in a macrao agreement. A macrao agreement assures that your credits will transfer to other institutions should you decide to attend someplace else. Additionally, they are usually much more expensive than attending a community college or public four year college or university. Good luck.