You need DD Form 2941, and this page gives you the blank plus the steps for handling it. Start with what the form does: Statement of Irrevocable Election of Educational Assistance Benefits Based on Qualifying for Educational Assistance. Its official title is DD Form 2941, Statement of Irrevocable Election of Educational Assistance Benefits, January 2009.
Your second step is the edition, not stated, listed as not stated. Your third is scope. Because the number carries a DD prefix, you use the same blank as every other military department and defense agency; no service-specific version exists for you to hunt down.
After that, turn to timing. The requirement comes from not stated; the form is maintained by not stated. Local implementing instructions fill in the dates, so check with the office that will receive your copy.
Last in this stage, choose your method: complete it on screen, or print the blank form and fill it out in pen. The sections below take each route step by step.
Now fill it in. Work from the top of the page downward, and do not jump ahead — the identifying block comes first, the substance of your entry second, the certification last. Later boxes often depend on what you put at the top.
Check the edition before you type a word. The date appears on the face of the form; it should read not stated. When it does not, discard the file and take a fresh copy from this page. Department-level revisions replace the blank across all services simultaneously, which means an old printout can be out of step everywhere.
If a particular field puzzles you, read the instructions printed on the form first, then go to not stated. When the two disagree, follow the directive.
Download the form
Step one is picking the format. You have PDF to choose from, across 1 pages, with approximately 16 fields to complete.
Choose pdf as your default. Next, click inside a box. A fillable pdf responds by outlining the field and letting you type; the text stays in the document when you save it. A printable pdf does not respond, which tells you to print the page and complete it by hand.
Type when you can. Printed entries stay legible after the form is scanned, copied and forwarded, and handwriting often does not survive that trip. If you must write by hand, use block capitals and press firmly.
Before you take the xfdl file, make sure you can open it. Install IBM Lotus Forms Viewer or an equivalent client first, because your pdf reader will refuse the file. Then download and complete it as normal.
Whichever you pick, you pay nothing — every format here is a free download. One last tip: open your pdf in a desktop reader rather than in a browser tab, because browser viewers sometimes drop the interactive fields you need.
What the form asks for
- 1. Member's information. a. Name (last, first, middle initial).
- b. Rank.
- c. Social security number. Do not include dashes.
- d. Service.
- e. Component (National Guard or Reserve).
- f. Category (Reserve affiliation). Press space bar to mark X in first box if Selected Reserve, second box if Individual Ready Reserve.
- Active service from: 4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day, no dividers.
- To: 4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day.
- Initial option 1.
- Initial option 2.
- 3.a. Member signature.
- b. Date (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- 4. Authorized service point of contact. a. Name (last, first, middle initial).
- b. Signature.
- c. Date (4 digit year, 2 digit month, 2 digit day).
- Press this Reset button to clear the data from all fields.
With the form finished, route it to the office named in not stated or in your organization's own instruction. Keep a copy first. People rarely regret having one and frequently regret not having one.
Should you need a related form, look it up by its number. The DD sequence is Department-wide, which makes your search simple: no service qualifier, no branch-specific variant to track down.
Watch out for one trap here. If your instructions cite a DA form as well, do not assume the numbers are connected. DA numbering belongs to the Army alone; DD numbering belongs to the Department and is administered by not stated or another Department office. The same number in each system means two unrelated forms, so read the prefix before you download.
Plan to repeat this step whenever the form comes up again. Revisions follow directive changes, changes in what data is collected, and updates to notice language. Since nobody notifies you, check not stated at download and you have covered it.
Finally, understand the limits of what you have read. This page distributes a published Department of Defense form and describes how to fill it out. It does not give legal or procedural advice, and it cannot promise any outcome for your particular case. For that, contact not stated, your administrative office, or the authority identified in not stated.
Questions and answers
- What is DD Form 2941?
- DD Form 2941, Statement of Irrevocable Election of Educational Assistance Benefits, January 2009
- Which edition is current?
- Not stated by the publisher
- Who is responsible for this form?
- Not stated
- In which formats can it be downloaded?