VA Voluntary Customer Surveys to Implement E.O. 12862

OMB APPROVAL NO. 2900-0569
Form V4

U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Benefits Administration
SURVEY OF
VETERANS and SERVICEMEMBERS
SATISFACTION with the
VA EDUCATION BENEFITS CLAIMS PROCESS
Thank you for your help with this important project. This booklet contains questions about your
recent experience with filing for VA education benefits. Please base your answers only on your
experience with the education claim identified in the space below.

Please read and answer the following question first.

According to their records, VA received an education claim from you,
you are currently receiving education benefits, or you have received
them in the past. Is this true?
Yes

(Continue to instructions on the next page of the booklet,
complete the rest of the questionnaire as soon as possible,
and mail it in the enclosed postage-paid envelope.)

No

(STOP. You do not have to complete the rest of this
questionnaire, but please return the questionnaire in the
enclosed postage-paid envelope.)

Again, we thank you for helping VA provide better service to veterans and their dependents.

PLEASE DO NOT WRITE IN THIS AREA

[SERIAL]

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INSTRUCTIONS
This survey will take about 20 minutes to complete. Please follow these instructions.

n

Use a soft lead pencil.

o

Fill in only one answer circle for each question unless it tells you to
"Mark all that apply."

p

When you are finished, place the questionnaire in the enclosed
postage-paid envelope and put it in the mail.

All questions ask you to fill in a circle. For example:
17. Did VA let you know your application
had been received?
Yes
No
In addition, at the end of the form there is space for you to give us any additional
comments concerning how VA could improve the way education benefits are handled.
Please watch for "SKIP" instructions -- they tell you when to skip over a group of
questions that you do not need to answer.
OMB Control Number: 2900-0569
Public Reporting Burden Statement
VA may not conduct, sponsor, or require the respondent to respond to this collection of information
unless it displays a valid OMB Control Number. All responses for this collection are voluntary. Public
reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 20 minutes per response,
including the time necessary for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and
maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Failure to
furnish the requested information will have no adverse effect on any VA benefit to which you may be
entitled.
The information you supply will be confidential and protected by the Privacy Act of 1974 (5 U.S.C. 522a)
and the VA’s confidentiality statute (38 U.S.C. 5701) as implemented by 38 CFR 1.526(a) and 38 CFR
1.576(b). Disclosure of information involves releases of statistical data and other non-identifying data for
the improvement of services within the VA benefits processing system and associated administrative
purposes. If you have comments regarding this burden estimate or any aspects of this collection of
information, call 1-800-827-1000 for mailing information on where to send your comments.

NOTE: Active-duty service also includes active-duty for training for reserve or guard.
PREPARING FOR YOUR
EDUCATION BENEFITS

5. How accurate was the information you
received?
Very accurate
Somewhat accurate
Neither accurate nor inaccurate
Somewhat inaccurate
Very inaccurate
Don't know

1. Are you currently on active-duty in the U.S.
Armed Forces?
Yes
No

2. When did you first LEARN about VA's

6. When did you begin to PLAN the use of
your education benefits?

education benefits program?

Before recruitment
At the time of recruitment
Soon after joining
Six months or more after joining
Shortly before separation
At or after separation

Before active-duty service
Six months or more before separation
from active-duty service
Less than six months before separation
from active-duty service
At separation from active-duty service
Less than six months after separation
from active-duty service
Six months or more after separation
from active-duty service

3. Where did you first LEARN about VA's
education benefits program?
Commercial or advertisement
Recruiter
VA information pamphlet
Another person in my unit
Military base or unit Education Office
Friend or family
VA's website on the Internet
School
Other

7. Which of the following information
sources did you find useful in PLANNING for
the use of your education benefits?
Mark all that apply
VA information pamphlet
VA's website on the Internet
Military base or unit Education office
Another person in my unit
Friend or family
School
Other
None of the above

4. Looking back, how much of what you
NEEDED TO KNOW did you get from this
source?
All
Most
Some
Little
None

8. While on active-duty, were you offered the
opportunity to attend any briefings or
sessions that provided information regarding
your education benefits?
Yes
No

GO TO TOP OF NEXT COLUMN

(CONTINUE with Q 9, page 2)
(SKIP to Q 12, page 2)

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page 1

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APPLYING FOR BENEFITS

9. Did you attend any briefing or sessions
that provided information regarding your
education benefits?
No
Yes

14. To whom did you submit your
application for education benefits?

(SKIP to Q 12)
(CONTINUE with Q 10)

School
VA directly by mail or visit
VA directly on-line through VA's website
Don't recall

10. Looking back, how much of what you
NEEDED TO KNOW did you get from these
sessions?

15. Did you find anything to be difficult or
confusing about the application?

All
Most
Some
Little
None

No
Yes

11. How accurate was the information you
received?
Very accurate
Somewhat accurate
Neither accurate nor inaccurate
Somewhat inaccurate
Very inaccurate
Don't know

16. What specifically did you find to be
difficult or confusing about the application?
Mark all that apply
Print size was hard to read
It was too long
Some questions were not clear
Some instructions were confusing
Asked for information VA should have
already had
Asked for information that was hard to
supply
Not clear why all the information was
needed

12. Within the past year, did you receive a
VA pamphlet about your education benefits
through the mail?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 17)
(CONTINUE with Q 16)

(SKIP to Q 14)
(CONTINUE with Q 13)

17. Did VA let you know your application had
been received?

13. How much of what you NEEDED TO
KNOW did you get from the pamphlet?

Yes
No

All
Most
Some
Little
None

18. How completely did VA keep you
informed of the status of your application?
Completely
Mostly
Somewhat
Only a little
Not at all
Didn't need status information

GO TO NEXT PAGE

page 2

19. How long did it take VA to process your
application?
1 week
2 weeks
3 weeks
4 weeks

5 weeks
6 weeks
7 weeks
8 weeks

24. How easy was it to get through to VA
when you called?

9 weeks
10 weeks or
more

Very easy
Somewhat easy
Neither easy nor difficult
Somewhat difficult
Very difficult
Never got through (SKIP to Q 32, page 4)

20. How long do you think is REASONABLE
for VA to process your application?
1 week
2 weeks
3 weeks
4 weeks

5 weeks
6 weeks
7 weeks
8 weeks

9 weeks
10 weeks or
more

25. Which of the following happened to you
when you called VA?
Mark all that apply
Got through on the first try
Got a busy signal
Experienced a reasonable wait time
Waited over a minute for call to be
answered
Hung up, couldn't wait for call to be
answered
Call disconnected before it was answered
Call got misdirected
Other, specify ______________________
None of the above

CONTACTING VA BY TELEPHONE
21. Did you PHONE VA about your recent
education claim?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 32, page 4)
(CONTINUE with Q 22)

22. How many times did you phone VA about
your recent claim?

26. How much of what you NEEDED TO
KNOW did you get from your telephone
contact with VA?

1 time
2 times
3 times
4 times
5 times or more

All
Most
Some
Little
None

23. Why did you call VA?

27. Generally, were you able to get this
information on the first call?

Mark all that apply
Get information before I applied for benefits
Apply for education benefits
Check on the status of my education claim
Change the status of enrollment
Verify enrollment to VA
Check on my remaining education benefits
Check on payment
Correct a payment problem
Get other information

Yes
No
28. Was your question answered by the
automated system or did you speak with a
VA employee?
Automated system (SKIP to Q 32, page 4)
VA employee
(CONTINUE with
Both
Q 29, page 4)

}

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VISITING VA'S WEBSITE AND
CONTACTING VA BY
INTERNET OR E-MAIL

29. How responsive was the person you
talked to?
Very responsive
Somewhat responsive
Neither responsive nor non-responsive
Somewhat non-responsive
Very non-responsive

32. Within the past year, did you VISIT VA's
Internet website [www.gibill.va.gov] about
your education benefits?
No
Yes

30. How courteous was the person you
talked to?
Very courteous
Somewhat courteous
Neither courteous nor discourteous
Somewhat discourteous
Very discourteous

(SKIP to Q 37, page 5)
(CONTINUE with Q 33)

33. Why did you visit VA's website
[www.gibill.va.gov]?
Mark all that apply
Get information before I applied for benefits
Apply for education benefits
Verify enrollment to VA
Send an inquiry to VA
Get other information about VA education
programs
Couldn't get through on a toll-free phone
number
Download a form
See what is available on the website
Other, specify _____________________

31. Were VA employees able to give you
information about your particular education
claim on the phone?
Yes
No
Didn't need claim information

GO TO TOP OF NEXT COLUMN

34. In general, how much of what you were
looking for did you find on VA's website?
All
Most
Some
Little
None
35. Did you find anything difficult or
confusing about the website?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 37, page 5)
(CONTINUE with Q 36, page 5)

GO TO NEXT PAGE

page 4

36. What specifically did you find difficult or
confusing about the website?

40. In general, how much of what you
NEEDED TO KNOW did you get from your
contact with VA using the Internet or e-mail?

Mark all that apply
System down or not working
Information displayed was hard to read
Information displayed was hard to
understand
Didn't understand where to go to retrieve
the information I wanted
Website didn't have the information I was
looking for
It was hard to move about within the
website
Other, specify _____________________
37. Within the past year, did you use the
Internet or e-mail to CONTACT VA about your
education benefits?
No
Yes

All
Most
Some
Little
None

OTHER SOURCES OF INFORMATION
41. Within the past year, did you receive
information about your education benefits
from any of the following?
Mark all that apply
State or county Veterans Service
Organizations
VA representative on military base
Reserve unit
Friends, family, co-workers
School
Congressional office
Other, specify _____________________
None of the above

(SKIP to Q 39,
41) page 5)
(CONTINUE with Q 38)
34, page 5)

38. Why did you contact VA using the
Internet or e-mail?
Mark all that apply
Get information before I applied for benefits
Check on the status of my education claim
Report a change in the status of my
enrollment
Check on my remaining education benefits
Check on payment
Correct a payment problem
Couldn't get through on a toll-free number
Sent an e-mail to get information after
visiting the VA website
Other inquiry, specify ________________

GO TO NEXT PAGE

39. What response did you get to your
Internet or e-mail inquiry?
Mark all that apply
Received an acknowledgment of my inquiry
Received a complete answer to my inquiry
Received an answer, but not all the
information requested
Inquiry was sent to another office
Never received an answer
from VA - (SKIP to Q 41)
Other, specify_______________________

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page 5

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VERIFYING ENROLLMENT TO VA
42. Have you used VA's automated phone
system [1-877-823-2378] to verify your
enrollment for your recent claim?
No
Yes

47. What specifically did you find to be
difficult about using VA's Web Automated
Verification of Enrollment (WAVE) to verify
your enrollment?
Mark all that apply
Unable to log-on to verification website
Information on VA Internet website form is
confusing
Information on VA Internet website form is
inaccurate
System didn't have my record
Not sure if Internet verification was
completed successfully
Couldn't remember my PIN
System wouldn't accept my PIN
Other, specify _______________________

(SKIP to Q 45)
(CONTINUE with Q 43)

43. Did you find anything to be difficult
about using VA's automated phone system
to verify enrollment?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 45)
(CONTINUE with Q 44)

44. What specifically did you find to be
difficult about verifying your enrollment
when you used VA's automated phone
system?

48. Have you phoned 1-888-GI-BILL-1
[1-888-442-4551] and spoken to a counselor
to verify your enrollment for your recent
claim?

Mark all that apply
Telephone number was frequently busy
System didn't have my VA record
Call was disconnected before verification
completed
My PIN didn't work
Other, specify _______________________

No
Yes

49. Why did you speak to a counselor to
verify your enrollment?
Mark all that apply
Experienced difficulty with telephone
verification when I called 1-877-823-2378
Experienced difficulty with Internet
verification on VA's website
System didn't have my record
My PIN didn't work
Don't have access to the Internet
In general, rather speak to a person
Believe I'll get paid faster
Don't trust automated systems
Not sure if automated verification was
completed successfully
Other, specify _______________________

45. Have you used VA's Web Automated
Verification of Enrollment (WAVE) at
www.gibill.va.gov to verify your enrollment
for your recent claim?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 48)
(CONTINUE with Q 46)

46. Did you find anything to be difficult
about using VA's Web Automated
Verification of Enrollment (WAVE) to verify
your enrollment?
No
Yes

(SKIP to Q 50, page 7)
(CONTINUE with Q 49)

(SKIP to Q 48)
(CONTINUE with Q 47)

GO TO NEXT PAGE

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page 6

RECEIVING YOUR BENEFIT PAYMENTS

50. Which method did you use most often
when verifying your enrollment?

51. From the time your application was
submitted to VA, how long did it take to get
your first check?

Phone VA's automated phone system at
1-877-823-2378
The Internet, Web Automated Verification of
Enrollment (WAVE) at www.gibill.va.gov
Speak to a counselor at 1-888-GI-BILL-1
[1-888-442-4551]

1 week
2 weeks
3 weeks
4 weeks
5 weeks

6 weeks
7 weeks
8 weeks
9 weeks
10 weeks

11 weeks
12 weeks
13 weeks or
more

GO TO TOP OF NEXT COLUMN
52. From the time your application was
submitted to VA, how long do you think is
REASONABLE for you to receive your first
check?
1 week
2 weeks
3 weeks
4 weeks
5 weeks

6 weeks
7 weeks
8 weeks
9 weeks
10 weeks

11 weeks
12 weeks
13 weeks or
more

53. Did you find anything to be difficult
about the benefit payment process?
Yes
No
Don't know

(CONTINUE with Q 54)

} (SKIP to Q 55, page 8)

54. What specifically did you find to be
difficult about the benefit payment process?
Mark all that apply
Payments didn't arrive when needed
Payments didn't arrive at the same time
each month
Have had to contact VA (in addition to
enrollment verification) to get payment
No explanation of the amount
No access to direct deposit
Problem with direct deposit

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page 7

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OVERALL IMPRESSIONS

55. Have you received an inaccurate
payment on your recent claim?
No
Yes

59. All things considered, how satisfied are
you with the way VA has handled your
education benefits claim?

(SKIP to Q 57)
(CONTINUE with Q 56)

56. Was the inaccuracy resolved in a timely
manner?

Very satisfied
Somewhat satisfied
Neither satisfied nor dissatisfied
Somewhat dissatisfied
Very dissatisfied

Yes
No
57. For your recent claim, have you had to
borrow or pay out-of-pocket expenses in
order to enroll or stay in school because VA
didn't complete your paperwork on time?

60. Do you plan to use all of your benefits
for this education program?
Yes
No
Not sure

Yes
No

GO TO NEXT PAGE

58. For your recent claim, have you had to
delay enrollment because VA didn't
complete your paperwork on time?
Yes
No

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page 8

GENERAL INFORMATION

66. Do you have access to the Internet?
No
Yes

61. What is your gender?
Male
Female
62. What is your current age?

(SKIP to Q 68, page 10)
(CONTINUE with Q 67)

67. Where do you have access to the
Internet?
Mark all that apply
At home
At my place of work
At school
At a friend's or relative's home
At a commercial establishment
At a public library
At a military base or reserve unit
Other, specify _____________________

19 years old or younger
20 to 24 years old
25 to 29 years old
30 to 34 years old
35 to 39 years old
40 to 49 years old
50 years old or older
63. What is your current marital status?

GO TO NEXT PAGE

Never been married
Married
Separated
Divorced
Widowed
64. Aside from the classes you are currently
taking, what is the highest level of education
you have completed?
High school graduate or GED
Some college
College graduate
Some graduate work
Graduate or professional degree
65. In what type of education program are
you currently enrolled?
On-the-job training or apprenticeship
program
Certificate/license program
Two-year academic college program
Four-year academic college program
Post-graduate degree program

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page 9

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68. Do you have any additional comments concerning how VA could improve the way education
benefits are handled? (To maintain confidentiality, please do not include your name, address, claim
number, or any other identifying information.) If you have specific concerns about your claim, please
contact VA by e-mail through VA's Internet website [www.gibill.va.gov] or by phone at 1-888-GI-BILL-1
[1-888-442-4551].

Thank you very much for taking the time to complete this survey. Your answers are very important.
Please place the questionnaire in the enclosed postage-paid envelope and send it to:
VA Study Director
Schulman, Ronca, & Bucuvalas, Inc.
8403 Colesville Road
Suite 820
Silver Spring, MD 20910

page 10
PLEASE DO NOT WRITE IN THIS AREA

[SERIAL]