Why sign in to the Community?

  • Submit a question
  • Check your notifications
Sign in to the Community or Sign in to TurboTax and start working on your taxes
New Member
posted Mar 3, 2022 8:22:29 AM

If I was in a technical school for my job in the military for 13 months, Does this count as a full-time student?

After basic training, we need to do 13 months of tech school to get our job. We also had to test for a certification once done

0 14 7212
14 Replies
Expert Alumni
Mar 3, 2022 8:51:12 AM

No, if this was related to your military service training, this would not count as being a full time student.

 

In order for you to be considered a full time student, you would have to be at a technical school for something unrelated, that was not part of your military service, then this would count as a full time student.  If you are asking this because you are trying to determine if someone else can claim you as a dependent, then this would qualify you as a dependent for your parents if you are under 24.

 

If you are asking this for an education credit, In order to claim the credit, your school must be listed as an eligible institution with the Department of Education.  If it is listed, then assuming you  meet the rest of the criteria then you can take it.  If it is not listed, then you cannot take the Lifetime Learning Credit. 

 

@sfaith02

(Edited 3/7/2022 @ 5:14AM PST)

Level 15
Mar 3, 2022 8:53:55 AM

No.  You were not a student.  You were a soldier, on duty, doing the job you are being paid to do.  Even West Point cadets are not considered students, for tax purposes. 

 So, a person who attended technical school while a member of the military is not eligible for education credits on a tax return, nor is he considerd as being a student for purposes of being a "Qualifying Child" dependent.

 

However, basic training and advanced individual training, are considered temporary absences from your parents home, for the dependent test.  But, I don't think a 13 month technical course would meet that criteria.  So, for example (and it's a common example), you graduate from high school in May and leave home to join the army. Your basic and AIT training take 3 months.  You still qualify as your parent's dependent because you were a full time student (HS) for parts of 5 months and were still considered as living with them for more than half the year (military training was only a temporary absence). 

Level 2
May 29, 2022 8:39:16 AM

Thank you so much for these recommendations! I am very grateful to you for the advice and for the videos you dropped. This is quite useful for me because I am also looking for a laptop including for academic work that I get at university. I recently read on the site https://writix.co.uk/essay-examples/macbeth very useful information for me about Shakespeare and his Macbeth. I started writing a little research on this topic.

Returning Member
Aug 18, 2022 1:32:48 AM

It's a good question

Returning Member
Aug 18, 2022 3:07:05 AM

yes,thanks for the answer

New Member
Nov 12, 2022 7:56:35 PM

Original poster was in fact considered a student. The “13 month technical course” he was talking about, is called tech school. Which you go to immediately after you graduate Basic training. And this Tech school is for you to learn your job before you get to your first duty assignment. You mentioned “advanced individual training”, which is essentially the same thing, but “AIT” is army terminology…. So what it seems like is, the SmartA*s isn’t such a SmartA*s… good try though..

Level 15
Nov 12, 2022 9:54:22 PM

@Bleanbolt A person who attended technical school while a member of the military is not eligible for education credits on a tax return, which was the whole point of asking about student status in an income tax user forum.

Level 15
Nov 13, 2022 5:15:11 AM

 A person who attended technical school while a member of the military is not eligible for education credits on a tax return, nor is he considerd as being a student for purposes of being a "Qualifying Child" dependent.

Level 15
Nov 23, 2022 2:55:35 PM

Military tech school does not qualify one as a student, since the military member is paid a wage to attend said school, and has absolutely no qualified out of pocket expenses incurred for said school.

Also, for those who may be wondering, "AIT" stands for Advanced Individual Training. This is additional training/instruction conducted outside of normal school attendance and is usually geared towards those who may be a bit behind the rest of there class, to help them keep up. During my time, the most common reason for a trainee to be in AIT, is if they missed a few days of class due to illness. Once they've caught up, AIT is over.

Level 15
Nov 23, 2022 3:58:04 PM

@Carl In the US Army and in the US Air Force - AIT or Advanced Individual Training is where the service members go to training for an individual skill and takes place after a service member completes Basic Training. 

 

In the Navy this is called “A” School

 

In the Marine Corp this is called Military Occupational Specialty (MOS) School

Returning Member
May 4, 2023 12:30:09 AM

I'm not quite sure what your link is on the topic, but it was helpful to me. Thanks...

New Member
Aug 26, 2023 2:54:53 AM

Thanks a lot for help! As a marketer, choosing between SE Ranking or Ahrefs depends on your goals. Ahrefs excels in backlink analysis, keyword research, and content exploration, making it ideal for in-depth campaigns. On the other hand, SE Ranking's budget-friendly pricing and user-friendly interface make it a great choice for small businesses seeking essential SEO insights.

New Member
Feb 1, 2024 12:56:56 PM

CARL: You are incorrect, all AIT is for after Basic Training, unless you are going through OSUT, which combines the two. Soldiers that are failing AIT get pushed back a couple weeks to be retrained on whatever subject they are having difficulties with. It may have been different if you were a militant during the Vietnam Era. That would make your opinions obsolete since things change as history progresses. Also certain MOS's have accredited courses with certificates that can be utilized outside of the Military. 

Level 15
Feb 1, 2024 2:33:45 PM

Some terminology differs among the services. When I was in the AF, AIT was for Advanced Individualized Training, which I already detailed earlier.
Vietnam era? How old do you think I am? I wasn't even in grade school back then. 🙂

One key thing not clearly defined in any IRS pub I can find, is any firm time limit of what constitutes a "temporary" absence. But it does say in IRS Pub 17 that "military service" can be considered a temporary absence. So I guess I was "temporarily absent" from my parent's house for the first 6 of my 20 years, at which point I got married. 🙂