Enhancing our understanding of issues faced by Operation Enduring Freedom, Iraqi Freedom and New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND) student veterans: a qualitative investigation of student veterans’ experiences and perspectives.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Rochester. Warner School of Education, 2017.Earning a college degree is a vehicle for employment opportunities and improvement in quality of life. However, Operation Enduring Freedom, Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation New Dawn (OEF/OIF/OND) student Veterans return from war zone deployment(s) with unique physiological, psychological and psychosocial challenges that negatively impact their transition into higher education institutions. In 2012, nearly one million (945,052) Veterans and beneficiaries used the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) education benefits, with a little over 650,000 using the 9/11 GI Bill (Veterans Benefits Administration [VBA], 2013). Typical users of the 9/11 GI Bill are Veterans from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq in support of OEF/OIF/OND. The first significant and comprehensive study analyzing one million student Veterans’ educational records for successful completion rates in higher education indicated a 51.7% completion rate among all student Veterans (Cate, 2014). This number is slightly lower compared to traditional non-Veteran students (58%; U.S. Dept. of Education, 2012). The Cate (2014) study highlights the gap that exists on empirical studies examining the outcomes of people using the 9/11 GI-Bill benefits, as it does not isolate completion rates of OEF/OIF/OND student Veterans. The purpose of this study is to enhance our understanding of issues faced by OEF/OIF/OND student Veterans and to elucidate their perceptions of factors that negatively impacted their college persistence. Constructive Grounded Theory (Charmaz, 2014) was used to explore and understand experiences and perspectives among OEF/OIF/OND students Veterans who discontinued higher education. Findings from this study will help determine areas that need further assessment and future studies to advance scientific understanding of OEF/OIF/OND student Veterans and their transition from the military to higher education. Furthermore, results will help inform higher education institutional policies and strategic planning on areas to best support student Veterans so they may successfully integrate and meet their educational goals, leading to program completion and eventual graduation