AUGUST 28, 2024 – This year marks the 80th anniversary of the G.I. Bill®[1], a historic piece of legislation that created a range of benefits for veterans, most notably tuition assistance. In fact, 7.8 million of the 16 million American veterans returning from World War II took advantage of the G.I. Bill’s education opportunities, and by 1947, half of college admissions were veterans utilizing the bill’s funding. Although much has changed since then, expanding academic opportunities for our military personnel and their families remains top of mind, as leveraging educational benefits was ranked in 2021 among the top reasons many chose to enlist.
However, trends have shown a steady decline in usage of the Post-9/11 G.I. Bill over the past five years, and the vast majority of active-duty members only have a high school diploma or GED. We can, and should, do better to help our veterans take advantage of this huge benefit they’ve earned through their service, especially because data conclusively shows that college degree holders earn more money over their lifetimes than those with only a high school education. In fact, despite the current debate over the value of college, bachelor’s degrees can boost post-service earnings by more than $10,000 a year.
This all suggests there is more to the story than the widespread and easily identifiable obstacles to pursuing higher education, like cost and lack of student support, as military personnel may face additional barriers to the traditional school model, such as unpredictable schedules and frequent relocation. As a first-generation college graduate who served in the United States Coast Guard and Coast Guard Reserve for 26 years, I know these challenges all too well. My parents would have gone into debt to send me to school, so I applied to the Coast Guard Academy to change my family’s economic trajectory. The option allowed my parents to re-tool their lives in a dying steel town, and education lifted my father up, too, as he earned his undergraduate degree less than a year after I did.
I loved being in the Coast Guard. Every minute. The opportunity to serve also allowed me to pursue teaching, the vocation I always really dreamed of. I thought I would teach high school through a program called Troops to Teachers, which helped ease the transition from military to civilian life. But after becoming an adjunct professor at a local community college to offset tuition costs for my own classes, I found my true calling was in higher education. Realizing that furthering my career path required pursuing additional degrees, I turned to an online university that offered tuition assistance and flexibility for active military and veterans.
These experiences have certainly shaped my approach to the variety of academic and operational roles in higher education that I have held over the years, most recently leading Walden University as associate president and provost. A pioneer in the online education space, serving students for over 50 years, Walden deeply understands the needs of nontraditional learners, which is essential for our military students. And as someone who completed two degrees online, something I would have had to delay time and time again with military moves getting in the way, I know the flexibility of online learning opens a whole new world of opportunity.
It’s not easy to go to school online, though. When I was doing it, there were so few people to engage with and ask questions, especially military-related ones. That’s why when considering a university, military students should look for institutions that offer a variety of specific services, such as VA Certifying Officials to explain benefits and 24/7 tech assistance, and programs that help foster a sense of community, like Walden’s active chapter of the Student Veterans Association. These support services are essential for keeping military students on track and motivated to reach that graduation milestone. Additionally, schools that offer supplementary tuition-savings initiatives, like scholarships and grants, are critical to making scholastic pursuits more attainable for military personnel and their families.
While transitioning back into the civilian workforce can be difficult and full of uncertainty, continuing to learn and gain valuable skills is the best way to be “semper paratus,” the Coast Guard motto, meaning “always ready.” And in turn, just like their commitment to serving our country, higher education institutions should be committed to providing our active-duty military, veterans and their families with accessible opportunities to grow, share their talents and expertise, and make a difference in the world around us.
About the Author
Dr. Sue Subocz has more than 20 years of experience in higher education, and has served in several leadership roles with Walden University since 2014. A first-generation college graduate, she earned both her PhD in Education, Instructional Design for Online Learning, and her Master of Science in Education from Capella University. She earned a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Maryland. Dr. Subocz is a graduate of the U.S. Coast Guard Academy, where she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering before going on to serve 26 years in the Coast Guard and Coast Guard Reserve.
[1] GI Bill® is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). More information about education benefits offered by VA is available at the official U.S. government Web site
at http://www.benefits.va.gov/gibill.