Use your VA education benefits for online design and technology training

Study CAD, BIM, Civil 3D, drafting and design, software engineering, data, and AI entirely online, from anywhere in the country.

Talk to our School Certifying Official See the approved programs

Post-9/11 GI Bill® (Chapter 33), Veteran Readiness and Employment (Chapter 31), and Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance (Chapter 35). VA determines your eligibility and how much of a program your benefits cover. You can check any school and program yourself with the VA GI Bill Comparison Tool.

A VDCI instructor working through a drafting exercise with students at workstations

programs approved for VA education benefits

100%

online, no campus attendance required

33 · 31 · 35

VA benefit chapters accepted

ACCET

nationally accredited, and an Autodesk Authorized Training Center

The benefits VDCI accepts

VDCI's approved programs are open to veterans, service members, and eligible dependents using any of the three benefit chapters below.

Chapter 33

Post-9/11 GI Bill®

The most common benefit. Depending on your rate of pursuit, it can cover tuition and fees, a books and supplies stipend, and a monthly housing allowance. Because VDCI's programs are delivered fully online, the housing allowance is paid at the online rate.

Chapter 31

Veteran Readiness and Employment

For veterans with a service-connected disability and an employment barrier. Your VR&E counselor authorizes the training and VDCI bills VA directly. Chapter 31 has its own authorization step, separate from GI Bill eligibility, so start with your counselor.

Chapter 35

Survivors' and Dependents' Educational Assistance

For eligible spouses and children. Chapter 35 pays a set monthly amount rather than tuition directly, so it will not necessarily cover a full program on its own. We can talk through the balance and payment options before you commit.

Not sure which benefit you have, how much entitlement is left, or what it will pay here? That is exactly what the conversation below is for, and you can always confirm independently with VA at va.gov/education or the GI Bill hotline at 888-442-4551.

Programs approved for VA education benefits

Every program below appears on VDCI's approval with the California State Approving Agency for Veterans Education and can be verified in VA's own GI Bill Comparison Tool under Virtual Design and Construction Institute, facility code 21321405. All are delivered online. Program names on this page are the catalog names; VA lists several of them under a slightly different approved title.

Approved programs

Drafting, design, and construction technology, plus software, data, and AI

Occupational Associate of Applied Science in Drafting and Design VDCI's degree program. The longest option, and the one that behaves most like traditional school for benefit purposes.

1,170 hours

$9,999

Ask about this

CAD/BIM Certificate Program AutoCAD and Revit together. The broadest of the drafting certificates.

400 hours

$7,750

Ask about this

BIM Certificate Program Building Information Modeling with Revit Architecture for commercial projects.

290 hours

$5,660

Ask about this

CAD Certificate Program 2D drafting with AutoCAD, plus Revit and SketchUp.

280 hours

$5,470

Ask about this

Civil 3D Certificate Program Infrastructure design with AutoCAD Civil 3D.

270 hours

$5,280

Ask about this

Software Engineering Certificate Program Front-end with HTML, CSS, JavaScript and React, back-end with Python and Django.

520 hours

$10,995

Ask about this

AI Software Engineering Certificate Program Designing, building, and deploying AI-powered applications.

300 hours

$9,999

Ask about this

Data Analytics & AI Certificate Program Analyzing data, building predictive models, and shipping AI-powered tools with Python.

210 hours

$6,995

Ask about this

All eight programs are open for enrollment now. Tell us which one you are considering and we will confirm start dates, what your benefit is likely to cover, and what would be left.

The work you will actually produce

These are course projects from VDCI programs, the same deliverables you would build and submit for grading. Portfolio work like this is the output of every program on this page.

A 3D structural model of a building produced in the CAD/BIM program

3D structural building modelCAD/BIM Certificate Program

A completed construction floor plan sheet drafted in the program

Construction document setCAD Certificate Program and the OAD degree

A 3D building systems model built in Revit in the program

Building systems modeled in RevitBIM Certificate Program

A playable browser card game built by students in the program

Playable browser game in JavaScriptSoftware Engineering Certificate Program

A world map data visualization built from a public dataset in the program

Map visualization from a public datasetData Analytics & AI Certificate Program

A complete multi page website built and deployed in the program

Deployed multi-page web applicationAI Software Engineering Certificate Program

How enrollment works

Four steps. Our School Certifying Official does the VA-facing part.

STEP 1

Talk it through

Tell us your goal and which benefit you plan to use. We will tell you which program fits, what your benefit is likely to cover, and what it will not.

STEP 2

Apply

Complete VDCI's application for the program you chose. Have your Certificate of Eligibility ready to upload, plus your DD-214 and Joint Services Transcript if you have them. Chapter 31 students come through their VR&E counselor instead.

STEP 3

We certify with VA

Once you are enrolled, our School Certifying Official submits your enrollment certification to VA. VA then pays according to your entitlement and rate of pursuit.

STEP 4

Start online

Coursework, projects, and instructor feedback all happen online. Attendance is measured by academic engagement, meaning submitted work, not by logging in.

Start your enrollment

Straight answers on the money

The questions people ask about most, answered the way VA states them. These are VA-published rules, not VDCI promises, and VA can change them.

What counts as full-time

VDCI's catalog defines full-time as 24 clock hours per week for certificate programs, and 12 quarter credits for the degree. For fully online programs VA measures training time by rate of pursuit rather than seat time.

Monthly housing allowance, online study

For students training exclusively online at more than half-time under Chapter 33, VA pays a housing allowance equal to half the national average BAH. VA publishes the current rate and updates it each August 1. Your actual amount depends on your entitlement percentage and rate of pursuit.

Housing if you study part-time

You need a rate of pursuit above 50% to receive any housing allowance, and the amount is prorated from there. At or below half-time, the housing allowance is zero. Half-time itself does not qualify.

If your entitlement is partial

Veterans at 90% or less, and most Chapter 35 and Chapter 30 students, will have a balance after VA pays. Ask before you enroll and one of our School Certifying Officials will go through the remainder with you, including payment plan options.

Two programs at once

You can complete programs one after another, but VA will not certify overlapping enrollments. We will sequence them with you.

VET TEC

VDCI is not a VET TEC provider and does not accept VET TEC.

Talk to our School Certifying Official

You will talk with one of our School Certifying Officials. No obligation, and nothing is submitted to VA from this form. We will confirm which programs your benefit can be used for, what would be left to pay, and when your program starts. VA decides what it pays you, so questions about your own rate go to VA. If a different school is a better fit for what you want to do, we will say so.

Call: (619) 758-9300
Email: admissions@vdci.edu
Hours: 9am to 6pm ET, Monday through Friday

Virtual Design and Construction Institute
3904 Groton Street, Suite 200, San Diego, CA 92110

Name Email

Phone Benefit you plan to use

Program you are interested in Anything we should know

You will hear back within one business day. Submitting starts a conversation, not a VA application.

Questions veterans ask

Are these programs really approved for VA education benefits?

Yes. VDCI's approved programs are listed with VA under facility code 21321405. Look up Virtual Design and Construction Institute in the VA GI Bill Comparison Tool to see the approved program list. Approval means the program met the standards of the State Approving Agency and VA. It is not an endorsement or recommendation of VDCI by either one.

Do I have to come to San Diego?

No. These programs are completed entirely online from anywhere in the United States.

Will my benefits cover the whole cost?

It depends on your benefit chapter, your entitlement percentage, and how much entitlement you have left. Chapter 33 at 100% typically covers tuition and fees for an approved program. Chapter 35 and Chapter 30 pay a fixed monthly amount and often will not cover a full program by themselves. One of our School Certifying Officials will go through the expected balance with you before you enroll rather than after.

How is attendance tracked in an online program?

By academic engagement. Submitting an assignment or project, taking a graded quiz or exam, posting to a graded discussion, or substantive contact with your instructor all count. Watching a video or logging in does not count on its own.

I have partial benefits, 90% or less. Can I still enroll?

Yes. Contact us before you register so we can set up the balance and, if you need one, a payment plan.

How does Chapter 31 work here?

Your Veteran Readiness and Employment counselor authorizes the training and sends the authorization to VDCI, and we bill VA directly. Chapter 31 is a separate authorization from GI Bill eligibility, so start with your counselor. Tell us you are Chapter 31 and we will coordinate from our side.

Can I take two programs at the same time?

Not concurrently. You can complete them one after another. VA will not certify overlapping enrollments, so we sequence them.

Do you accept VET TEC?

No. VDCI is not a VET TEC provider.

Who do I call at VA with benefit questions?

The GI Bill hotline is 888-442-4551, and benefit information is at benefits.va.gov/gibill. For questions about your payments and entitlement, VA is the authority, not us.

GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). VDCI's programs are approved by the California State Approving Agency for Veterans Education. Approval does not constitute endorsement by VA or any government agency. VA determines eligibility and payment amounts.