Understanding Patterns of College Outcomes among Student Veterans

Abstract

Even as we expect an increase in veteran student enrollment in higher education, little attention has been paid to the role students' background characteristics and college experiences play in college outcomes among student veterans. The purpose of this study is to examine differences in precollege characteristics and college experiences between veteran and nonveteran students and a predictive power of being a veteran student on college outcomes. Using data from the 2008 University of California Undergraduate Experience Survey (UCUES), the study conducted cross tabulations and blocked multiple regression analyses on two college outcomes: college GPA and sense of belonging. Results demonstrate that student veteran status is negatively associated with college GPA. The origins of the negative effect of being a veteran student are discussed.

Military-Connected Student Academic Success at 4-Year Institutions: A Multi-Institution Study

“…They concluded that veteran students had lower GPAs and sense of belonging than nonmilitary peers but had higher levels of academic MILITARY-CONNECTED STUDENT SUCCESS 6 participation and interaction, collaborative work and academic time management. Durdella and Kim (2012) found that veterans in their study were more likely to work and less likely to be involved in extracurricular activities which both contributed to lower GPAs; however, they offered that the role of family and responsibilities common to non-traditional students could explain this finding. The current study expands Durdella and Kim's (2012) work by examining a larger sample of military-connected students at four-year private and public less selective institutions.…”

“…Durdella and Kim (2012) found that veterans in their study were more likely to work and less likely to be involved in extracurricular activities which both contributed to lower GPAs; however, they offered that the role of family and responsibilities common to non-traditional students could explain this finding. The current study expands Durdella and Kim's (2012) work by examining a larger sample of military-connected students at four-year private and public less selective institutions.This multi-institution quantitative study seeks to build upon the current research by examining the association between several of these factors and the academic outcome of GPA. A significant number of qualitative studies have examined military-connected students' experiences in college.…”

“…These studies focused on military-connected students' transition and collegiate experiences but did not focus specifically on their academic success. Durdella and Kim (2012) explored pre-entry and college characteristics of student veterans with GPA and sense of belonging outcomes in a comparison of veteran and non-veteran students in a system of highly selective institutions. They concluded that veteran students had lower GPAs and sense of belonging than nonmilitary peers but had higher levels of academic MILITARY-CONNECTED STUDENT SUCCESS 6 participation and interaction, collaborative work and academic time management.…”

“…Military experience is an additional level of identity military-connected students must navigate during their transition to college (DiRamio & Jarvis, 2011). Many identity factors included in this study have been explored in literature related to military-connected students' transition experiences, including sex and gender (Baechtold & De Sawal, 2009;Demers, 2013;DiRamio & Jarvis, 2011;DiRamio, Jarvis, Iverson, Seher & Anderson, 2015), first-generation student status (Durdella & Kim, 2012), and family (having a spouse, partner and/or dependent children) (Whiteman et al, 2013). Although the role of ethnicity for military-connected students has not been highly researched, almost 40% of military-connected students identify as non-White Beyond social identity characteristics, extant literature has explored the role of deployment (DiRamio et al, 2008;Rumann & Hamrick, 2010) and service-related injury or disability (Kraus & Rattray, 2013;Schiavone & Gentry, 2014).…”

Pilot Programs for Veterans Transition to Engineering Fields

“…Another difference reported by veteran students, especially by the wounded warriors, was that since their average age is 25, it is hard for them to make friends with other students which average age is 17 to 18 (Branker, 2009;Heitzman & Somers, 2015). Instilling a sense of belonging in the military student population would be key, since sense of belonging has been shown as one of the predictors for later academic success and retention (Durdella & Kim, 2012).…”