Report: US Military Veterans Failing College Or Are Colleges Failing Vets?

[pinboy3niner]

By Dusten Carlson
Posted: July 2, 2012

New statistics show that United States military veterans are struggling in college, failing in large numbers, citing post-war stressors such as PTSD and a lack of social support.

Out of an estimated 800,000 veterans enrolled in collegiate institutions, approximately 80% struggle, only to leave after just one year, according to the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education and Labor and Pensions.. Only about 3% make it all the way and receive diplomas, notes Newser. Though they excel in life-and-death situations, the high pressures of the classroom are different than ones encountered on the battlefield, with many blaming their poor academic performance on PTSD, cultural divides, and the rigorous intellectual challenges of higher education. “I was the man in the military,” said one retired officer. “Now I’m sitting next to an 18-year-old and I’m struggling to keep up with him in this class.”

A big problem is that most college students came fresh out of high school, while military vets have been removed from a scholastic environment for years. “They are (taking) academically rigorous courses after being removed from the academic setting for so long,” said Michael Dakduk, executive director of Student Veterans of America, a support network for ex-military college students.

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Some stresses are triggered unintentionally, notes MSNBC. Exam anxiety, which we’ve all been through, can actually trigger PTSD episodes in veterans. The social situation is tough as well – here you have mature students with a handle on the fragility of life and lethal situations thrown into an environment with restless twentysomethings looking to party. “They really don’t realize how precious life can be, how it can go away in the drop of a dime. They’re more worried about what they’re going to be wearing to school tomorrow, or the spring break that’s coming up. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s just two different people,” said one vet.

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http://www.inquisitr.com/267968/report-us-military-veterans-failing-college-or-are-colleges-failing-vets/

This story triggered some old stuff for me. I remember going to college after Vietnam. I was deadly serious about my studies, and I saw many around me who were less concerned about their classes and more concerned about their social scene.

They weren't much younger than I was, but they hadn't been where I'd been and they hadn't seen what I'd seen. We weren't far apart in age, but there was a vast difference in our life experience.

[enlightenment]

1. I've found that most of the veteran

students I have are very good. Yes, a few have had some academic issues, but unlike some others, they will acknowledge the problems and seek help addressing them. Some have adjustment issues and most have fairly low tolerance for the kids who don't take the class or their studies seriously (but then, so do I . . .). A few have had some psychological issues and I, as do most of my colleagues, make a concerted effort to notify the class when we will be discussing - or showing film/video - of traumatic events, and offer alternative options for vets who are not able to cope with those things. I can't resolve PTSD, but I can attempt to ameliorate it in the classroom.

[pinboy3niner]

2. It sounds like you have a good, and sensitive approach

Yeah, I had a really low tolerance for the 'skaters.'
]
It's been a long time since I was in college. But when I was there, in the '70s, one guy I really admired was a serious student who also volunteered at the local office of La Raza.

I was at USC--a big football school. I didn't give a shit about that, but I was impressed by my La Raza friend's commitment to social justice.

After my war experience, some things just seemed to be more important.

[CRK7376]

3. I enlisted in 1977

right after graduating from high school. I knew I was not ready for college, I needed time away from academia. My parents, college professor and teacher were not happy, but understood and supported me. After serving 3 years in Germany I came home and went to college. Hard for me, not being a great student, but I was too stubborn to quit or drop out. Made it through, picked up a commission and am still serving today including a tour in Afghanistan and elsewhere. I was a serious student, had fun, don't get me wrong, but was pissed at those who didn't understand the service or why academics was important. I worked lots of hard labor jobs in high school and while in college so I knew education was the way not to be priming tobacco or working at the local brick factory or piece work at a lumber yard building shipping pallets. Can't imagine trying to be a full or part time student after serving multiple deployments in Iraq or Afghanistan and coming home to college. One tour was hard enough.