Understanding Transition Experiences of Combat Veterans Attending Community College

ABSTRACT

The majority of research concerning student veterans has been conducted at the university level, with minimum analysis performed at the level where the vast majority of returning veterans attend school: the community college. While some research has discussed what services colleges and universities should offer returning veterans, little research has been conducted on understanding the actual experiences of veterans making the transition from service member to college student. A group of varied gender and racial backgrounds took part in an effort to describe the lived experiences of combat veterans making the transition into community college after active military service. Findings include the inadequacy of current models for use in understanding student-veteran transition experiences, particularly at the community college, and the discovery that the majority of student veterans involved in this study do not take part in on-campus programs specifically designed for them. The experiences of military veterans who enroll in community colleges subsequent to deployment in a combat environment since 11 September 2001 have not been adequately researched and remain misunderstood (Ewing, 2011; Gomez, 2011; Karni, 2011; Wood, 2011). Existing models of student transition used to describe the student-veteran experience are largely inadequate and framed around traditional 4-year colleges and universities. As a result, higher education stakeholders may not have the necessary information to effectively assist this growing student demographic. Further research will increase the body of knowledge in this important area and, it is hoped, lead to more effective educational policies regarding student veterans.