Leave your feedback Share Copy URL https://www.pbs.org/newshour/show/war-vets-still-struggle-with-education-costs-despite-g-i-bill-benefit Email Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Tumblr Share on Facebook Share on Twitter Transcript John Merrow reports on how education benefits offered through the G.I. Bill are issued to soldiers returning from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and the renewed efforts by some members of Congress to expand the bill, which has seen reduced funding over the years. Read the Full Transcript Notice: Transcripts are machine and human generated and lightly edited for accuracy. They may contain errors. TV AD ANNOUNCER: As a soldier in the United States Army, you'll find out what you're really made of. JOHN MERROW, NewsHour Correspondent: The military touts educational benefits in its television commercials. TV AD ANNOUNCER: … over 150 careers, help pay for college… JOHN MERROW: Recruiters deploy them as a marketing tool. But as many veterans have learned, the benefits aren't all they're cracked up to be.Former Marine Kyle Williams served two tours in Iraq. After leaving the military, he enrolled at the University of California, but was shocked by the costs. KYLE WILLIAMS, Former Marine: At UC Davis, it's going to cost me for the year about $25,000 between rent, books, tuition, and food and living costs. JOHN MERROW: Williams' GI benefits, about $10,000 for the school year, will cover less than half of that, so he'll have to go deeply into debt. KYLE WILLIAMS: For my first year at UC Davis, I'm looking to apply for a private loan, from about $12,000 to $15,000, hopefully to be approved for that, to cover my tuition upfront, books, and extra living costs, and rent. JOHN MERROW: Williams had hoped his education benefits would go much further. KYLE WILLIAMS: The fact that you're not compensated for the type of school you want to go to or the dreams that you may have or the goals that you have is one of the most frustrating things, that not only does it hurt you, but it holds you back. JOHN MERROW: Former Army Reservist Chris Mettler is also frustrated. He was enrolled in community college, but then was called to serve two tours in Iraq. Upon returning home, he left the Reserves to concentrate on his studies. CHRIS METTLER, Former Army Reservist: You can't really pursue a solid education due to all the exercises you go on annually and the deployments. JOHN MERROW: He was getting about $800 a month in benefits. Then, a letter arrived from the Department of Veterans Affairs. CHRIS METTLER: When I read the letter from the VA, I was pretty upset, to say the least, because they stated in there that they had overpaid me $3,800 in education benefits. JOHN MERROW: Mettler didn't know it, but by leaving the Reserves he had forfeited his benefits and would have to pay the money back. CHRIS METTLER: It was a punch to the stomach from the federal government to me. I don't think that's right; that's wrong in how they're treating their veterans. JOHN MERROW: Mettler was caught in a classic catch-22. He couldn't pursue his education while he was in the Reserves, because he kept getting called to Iraq, but he couldn't get his benefits because he was no longer in the Reserves. CHRIS METTLER: They're essentially saying that, "Oh, based on your discharge, your deployments are no longer worth anything. Your contribution to the fight was nice while it lasted, but since you don't want to stay in the military, you know, we're not going to continue to pay for your education."