Young Veterans in College

The Washington Post published a piece on Friday that captured some of the issues veterans are facing as they transition from military life to college life.

As the economy forces institutions of higher education to narrow their priorities, the new GI bill is leading to increasing numbers of veterans on campus, offering more benefits to veterans than its counterpart some fifty years ago. Due to this population's special characteristics differentiating themselves from traditional students, one of the biggest ways to welcome veterans is to create a full-time position or a program that represents the particular needs of this constituency.

Student veterans are a singular population: They are older and more likely to be married than traditional students, and they are more likely, as reserve members, to be called up for deployment in the middle of the semester. Some return from combat needing help dealing with the emotional aftermath of war; many, like Day, feel isolated.

And all deal with the frustrations of navigating bureaucracies in their schools and the Department of Veterans Affairs, both of which have rules and procedures that can be overwhelming. Tuition is due the first of the month, but the GI Bill payment arrives much later. Academic credits earned in military training won't transfer. Call the federal government, and it's impossible to get a human being on the line; call the university, and no one is quite sure who can help.

"The military is so structured and organized, and when you get on a college campus, it's chaos," said Michael Johnson, a Marine who served in Iraq in 2005. "What we don't want to see is that guy get so frustrated with the system that he quits -- or doesn't even start."

As the article goes on to note, George Mason has been a leader in this area, hiring Johnson to ensure that academic policies are fair to veteran students, while also providing programming and academic support for veteran students who may still have difficulties in transitioning. Furthermore, with our military already stretched thin, veterans and institutions need to be conscious of the possibility of a redeployment -- even in the middle of a semester.

Hopefully while many colleges and universities begin eyeing and/or making cuts to services/positions, they think about the surge in veteran student populations over the next few years due to the GI Bill. Whether or not traditional students choose to go to college is one thing; we do know, though, that there will be an increase in the number of servicemen and servicewomen enrolling in higher education (thanks to the GI Bill) as they return and try to adjust to a shrinking economy. While the American Council on Education estimates that 57 percent of institutions have some kind of service/program tailored to veterans, this percentage needs to increase in the coming years.