The Defense Activity for Non-Traditional Education Support (DANTES) announced March 20 that the Navy, Marine Corps, Army and Coast Guard are moving to one standard academic transcript to reflect military academic credit recommendations.
The Sailor Marine Corps American Council on Education Registry Transcript (SMART), the Army American Council on Education Registry Transcript System (AARTS) and the Coast Guard Institute (CGI), were aligned to implement one collaborative transcript program, now called the Joint Services Transcript (JST). With this collaboration, service members and veterans have one officially recognized military transcript.
The JST is now the official transcript tool for Army, Marine Corps, Navy and Coast Guard personnel that validates and documents the recommended college credits for professional military education, training courses and occupational experience of service members and veterans. This unified and standardized document makes it easier for institutions to review and articulate these credits as appropriate to service members and veterans degree programs.
"Having a single officially-recognized military transcript makes it significantly easier for colleges and universities to assess potential credits for service members," said DANTES Director Dr. Carol Berry. "This official transcript system is a huge development in the military higher education arena and will most certainly enhance the educational experience for service members and veterans as they pursue their college education."
The JST document will contain the following information for individual service members:
- Military branch-specific seal (Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard) Note: The Air Force utilizes the Community College of the Air Force for their transcripts.
- Service member data
- Course completions
- Occupational affiliations
- Credentialing (certifications and or licenses)
- Military experience
- Summary page
- Academic course page (Coast Guard, Marine Corps and Navy only)
- College Degrees (Coast Guard, Marine Corps and Navy only)
"The JST was officially announced at the recent Council of College and Military Educators conference," added Berry. "The merger of AARTS, SMART, and CGI to a 'purple' or 'joint' transcript under a single name and program is a major accomplishment for the Military Voluntary Education Program and was enthusiastically supported by institutions, conference attendees and other stakeholders."
The Navy, Marine Corps and Army JST are currently available online at:
