Military Student

Once you are enrolled as a student, it's important to connect with BU's OMVR and let us know you have a military history so you are classified as a military student. This opens the door to military-specific academic advisement and peer collaboration and will help facilitate the MAC-RB process. While participation in the MAC-RB is voluntary, it's highly encouraged regardless of the length of your military career to determine any potential equivalencies and help you earn your college degree faster and more affordably.

What Do I Need?

Evidence of military service and training as well as all supporting documentation (not originals as they will be retained) should be submitted to the MAC-RB Executive Committee.

• DD-214
• JST or CCAF (Military Transcript)
• Evaluations
• Certificates/diplomas from military schools, academies or advanced training (1059s)
• Award Narratives
• Pictures
• Other documentation which indicates formal learning/training or hands-on experience to help the Executive Committee understand your military education

Personal Narrative

Submitting a personal narrative is optional but provides you an additional opportunity to showcase any type of experiential learning you've had in your military career that may not be thoroughly reflected in your personnel file. It's your opportunity to tell your story and what situations you've been in that might be considered for college level credit.

Personal Narrative Thought Starters (include but not limited to):

• Deployments/mobilizations
• Awards
• Rank/acting positions or significant periods of acting rank
• Schools/Academies/Other training opportunities
• Additional duty responsibilities
• Informal learning/leading opportunities: Did you teach or lead anyone? Were you placed in charge of anything?
• Any additional experiences not reflected on your DD-214 or evaluations
• Connect your life experience with class experience: Where did you go? What did you do? With whom did you work? How are the things you've done worthy of credit?

After reviewing your documentation, the MAC-RB Executive Committee will conduct a personal interview to get to know you better and to further explore any relevant information before recommending credit hour/General Education Points (GEPs) equivalencies based on your military training and experience.

The interview questions will be guided by the evidence submitted and by your personal narrative (if you choose to submit one). Executive Committee interviewers will seek to clarify evidence and to ensure individual competence in the areas relevant to academic course work. 

After conducting the interview, the Executive Committee will consult with appropriate BU academic departments to ensure competencies gained in military training and experience match student learning objectives. It’s possible additional interviews or documentation will be requested based on departmental guidance. 

The Executive Committee will then prepare a recommendation on total credit hours and GEPs and present it to the full MAC-RB for endorsement. The MAC-RB will either endorse or recommend changes in equivalency. The Executive Committee will inform you of this decision.
 

Once the MAC-RB makes its recommendation, you can either accept it or, if you feel the MAC-RB overlooked something, you may elect to initiate an appeal. This appeal process allows you to go before the MAC-RB to explain why you feel additional credit hours or GEPs are justified. After the appeal is conducted, the MAC-RB will render a final, binding decision. After that, you may only bring new evidence forward for future recommendations.
 

Once the MAC-RB has rendered its final decision, it will forward its recommendation for credit hours and/or GEPs to the Office of the Provost for approval (or additional consideration). After the Provost’s office approves the recommendation, it will be sent to the Office of the Registrar to be applied to your official record as transfer credits. The Registrar, in consultation with the Provost, has the final say on what is applied to your record.