Hey everyone! Junior here planning on enlisting after high school and then on to college. I'm particularly interested in Virginia - so does anyone have any recommendations for military-friendly colleges in the area?
Absolutely, you're in luck! Virginia is home to several military-friendly colleges and universities that offer benefits for those serving or who have served.
1. Virginia Military Institute (VMI) in Lexington is a public military college known for its emphasis on leadership and honor. It is one of the six senior military colleges in the U.S that are not part of the service academies, so while it provides military-style leadership experiences, students are usually not required to serve in the military upon graduation.
2. George Mason University in Fairfax is recognized as a military-friendly school and it provides resources such as the Office of Military Services, which offers academic advising, career counseling, and benefit processing support to military and veteran students.
3. University of Mary Washington (UMW) in Fredericksburg has been recognized as one of the top military-friendly colleges in Virginia and offers a number of services to veterans, reserves, active duty personnel, and dependents, such as an on-campus Veterans Center and Veterans Support Team.
4. Old Dominion University (ODU) in Norfolk has a long history of supporting veterans and has a Military Connection Center which assists military-affiliated students with services like enrollment, academic counseling, and employment assistance.
5. Lastly, Virginia Tech in Blacksburg also has a full-service Office of Veterans Services which offers assistance with benefits, educational counseling, and other services for veteran and military students.
Remember to investigate the specific programs and resources each of these colleges offers for military students. You might also want to consider reaching out to current students or alumni who have utilized these resources to see how it impacted their experience. Each of these colleges may have different educational benefits for military veterans, so it also helps to reach out to their Veterans or Military Services departments, or financial aid offices, directly to learn more. Best of luck with your future endeavors, both in the military and in college!
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