Report: College Is Failing Young US Veterans

Higher education is failing U.S. military veterans despite expansions to the GI Bill, according to a report released today, but some institutions are doing a better job than others.

Less than a third of college graduates who had served in the military said that their university catered to their needs, according to a Gallup-Purdue survey of 3,735 veterans. At private for-profit and private nonprofit universities, the rate was a little higher, at 36 percent. At public universities, only 24 percent felt their needs were met.

Public colleges may be disappointing vets because they are larger, and lack special programs and counseling, said Brandon Busteed, Gallup's executive director of education and workforce development. "Some public institutions have invested a lot to support veterans, but they're having a tougher time delivering satisfaction," he said.

The satisfaction rate jumped to 55 percent for veterans who graduated after the post-9/11 GI Bill expanded its provisions in 2008, but Busteed calls that number inadequate, too.

"I don't think anyone would even be happy with 55 percent satisfaction," he said.

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