TOKYO — Active-duty Navy officers in five officer communities are now eligible for the Graduate Education Voucher program, which will allow them to obtain a graduate degree during off-duty hours, the Navy announced Tuesday.

The program provides $40,000 per degree with a maximum of $20,000 per fiscal year for specifically authorized, Navy-relevant graduate education, according to a Navy release.

Only unrestricted line officers in designators 111X, 112X, 113X, 114X, and 13XX from O-3 to O-5 are eligible. Applicants must also be on shore duty.

Enrollment in the program carries a service obligation of between two and three years, the release said.

According to NAVADMIN 270/11, there are 115 planned openings for fiscal year 2012, subject to funding availability. The NAVADMIN and other information on the GEV program can be found at https://www.navycollege.navy.mil/gev/gev_home.cfm.