Military Times Recognizes Ohio State as a Top College for Veterans
Thousands of American military veterans and their families call The Ohio State University home. In light of that and other noted reasons, the university was recently recognized as one of the most veteran-friendly universities in the country according to Military Times magazine. The publication annually ranks colleges doing the most for military veterans based on student veteran surveys indicating what they value most in a college or university.
In Best for Vets: Colleges 2014, the magazine ranked Ohio State 18th among four-year colleges, and gave four stars to the university for academic support and extra-curricular opportunities. This year, in addition to evaluating a school’s veteran-focused operations, the publication placed a new emphasis on academic rigor, and Ohio State’s graduation rate (82 percent), is one of the top four among all institutions.
The publication looked at factors such as service member enrollment, percentage of tuition covered by the GI Bill and availability of specific programs to help service members. The ranking factored in statistics to track student success and academic quality, including student loan default rates, retention rates, graduation rates and student-faculty ratio.
Mike Carrell, assistant provost and director of the Office of Military and Veterans Services, says the ranking recognizes Ohio State’s enhanced efforts to assist veteran students.
“There are more than 2,200 military and veteran students and their family members enrolled at Ohio State,” said Carrell. “We deliver many programs to build their trust and help our students graduate. A big part of our work involves multiple partnerships throughout the university community, as well as with local, state and federal agencies. This is a success story for veteran students.”
Other Ohio State resources for veteran students include a Veterans House (a housing option for students who are veterans, active-duty, reserves and National Guard) and a student organization that is a chapter of the National Student Veterans of America.
In addition to assisting students with educational and academic resources, the office also provides focused academic counseling and tailored support services. It also conducts military and veteran orientation sessions, and educates faculty and staff on military student issues.
The office recently partnered with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) to bring a Vet Success on Campus counselor to Ohio State to coordinate the delivery of benefits and services to veteran and military students. The office also partners with external agencies and resources such as the Chalmers P. Wylie VA Ambulatory Care Center and county Veterans Services offices to ease the transition from military member to civilian and college student.
Ohio State’s military and veterans programs have earned national recognition in other areas, including being named one of the nation’s top “Military Friendly Schools” for five consecutive years by G.I. Jobs magazine. The university is also one of the initial 50 universities nationwide to sign the “Got Your 6” pledge in cooperation with the Tillman Foundation, the National Student Veterans of America (Ohio State’s chapter is "Vets4Vets") and Operation College Promise.
Ohio State also offers the Veteran Community Advocate Program for veteran students. Through the program, advocates receive scholarship money and are assigned to offices throughout the university to help connect fellow veterans to resources and help them gain various job readiness experiences. The program currently supports 10 advocates. Plans are under way to expand to 30 advocates by next year and to include regional campuses.
About The Ohio State University
The Ohio State University is a dynamic community of diverse resources, where opportunity thrives and where individuals transform themselves and the world. Founded in 1870, Ohio State is a world-class public research university and the leading comprehensive teaching and research institution in the state of Ohio. With more than 63,000 students (including 57,000 in Columbus), the Wexner Medical Center, 14 colleges, 80 centers and 175 majors, the university offers its students tremendous breadth and depth of opportunity in the liberal arts, the sciences and the professions.
