George Mason University has been named one of the nation’s top schools in terms of best practices for military- and veteran-supported education.
The distinction was announced by Military Advanced Education & Transition Magazine as part of its 2017 guide to colleges and universities. George Mason was also named, again, as a military friendly institution in Victory Media’s annual rankings.
“All those designations are indicators of our commitment to the student-veteran population,” said Jennifer Connors, director of Mason’s Office of Military Services. “When you are looking nationally at schools, it postures us to be a premier institution dedicated to student veteran support.”
The guide published by Military Advanced Education & Transition reports results from a questionnaire about military-supportive policies at more than 600 private and public two- and four-year institutions, the magazine’s website says. The questionnaire evaluates military culture, financial aid, on-campus support and online support services.
Connors said Mason has about 3,200 students who are veterans or family members of veterans. What distinguishes Mason, she said, is its focus on career services and that it has an on-campus point person to help students deal with U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs questions and complications.
Thanks to a fundraising campaign, Mason’s Office of Military Services has an emergency fund through which applicants can get need-based scholarships. There also is a sense of community promoted through a lounge in SUB I where Connors said “students can come and have some fellowship and camaraderie, which is priceless.”
“Other institutions,” she said, “don’t have that.”