The Military Discharge Upgrade Manual
How to Fix Your DD-214 and Reclaim Your Benefits
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About this book
An Other Than Honorable discharge can cost a veteran the GI Bill and put VA health care and disability pay in doubt. Most veterans who hold one never hear that there is a process to ask for a review. This book explains that process in plain language: which board hears your case, how the boards weigh PTSD, TBI and military sexual trauma, how to build the record and write the personal statement, and why you can file a VA claim while the upgrade is still pending.
Inside this book
- 1Discharge Types and What They Cost
- 2The Two Boards: DRB vs. BCMR
- 3PTSD and MST as Grounds for Upgrade
- 4Writing the Personal Statement
- 5Gathering Evidence for Your Upgrade
- 6The Hearing: What to Expect and How to Prepare
- 7After the Board: Next Steps, Granted or Denied
- 8VA Character of Discharge Determination
The book points you to its free field guide, Applying for a Discharge Upgrade or Correction (a free download, no signup).
Pairs with
Free guides and worksheets need no signup and no book. Books and workbooks are coming soon.
Free guideApplying for a Discharge Upgrade or Correction
Free guideFiling a VA Character of Discharge Determination
Free worksheetBuddy Statement Pack
Free worksheetThe Frozen Record
Free worksheetThe Reason Underneath
Free worksheetTwo Boards
Free worksheetWhich Door
J. Erickson
Author, educator, former veteran service officer.
J. Erickson is a service-disabled Air Force veteran. He served as a military firefighter and as a veteran service officer, where he spent years walking veterans through the same claims process he writes about now. He holds an MBA and writes plain-language guides for veterans who want to understand the system without a translator.
Read more about the author