Reducing Student Loans for Veterans
Reducing Student Loans for Veterans
When only about 73% of college tuition is covered by the current G.I bill, the amount of expense left over is often unreachable for our honored Military Veterans. They have served our country, often in lieu of getting their degree right out of high school, and are no longer rewarded to the same degree as the veterans from World War II. The original G.I. Bill was to cover the entire college education, plus a monthly cash benefit for the first year. Now our vets are forced to find other means to meet expenses.
Luckily for some veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars, there are two colleges that will honor their service to a higher degree. Illinois residents who have served in Iraq or Afghanistan are being given access to train for new careers. They will only pay for textbooks and fees. The degree’s they can work towards are an Associate of Arts in Business Administration, or a Bachelor of Arts in Management.
The original program for this school was offered to “First Responders” or those already employed in a police or firefighting position that wanted to further their education. The federal government established this program with a $750,000 grant, and now will expand to include military veterans.
Pace University in New York City is also planning to honor our brave soldiers by awarding a 50% tuition scholarship to veterans from Iraq or Afghanistan. These soldiers must have served in one of the two countries since 2001 to qualify, but they are free to choose almost any degree offered at the school’s two locations. The only limitations are on the law school, the doctoral program, and the Executive MBA programs.
These two programs are taking advantage of a clear market for dedicated and successful students. Armed service veterans are a hot commodity, and the two colleges are recognizing the potential of these unique individuals. Just as a sports team will recruit good players, these schools are trying to attract more students with a desire to succeed that is not easily swayed. With the two schools specifically targeting the most recent wave of veterans, more and more colleges will hopefully get on board as well.