Veterans Education Success performs non-partisan research on student outcomes and higher education policy issues
OUR RESEARCH REPORTS
Quality of Education & Student Outcomes
Election 2020: Policy Memo for Candidates: Supporting Military-Connected Students in Higher Education
Election 2020: Policy Memo for Candidates: Supporting Military-Connected Students in Higher Education Read the report and visit our webpage here: https://vetsedsuccess.org/election-2020-policy-memo-for-candidates-supporting-military-connected-students-in-higher-education/
Veterans’ Use of Private Student Loans: A Primer
Click here to download a PDF copy of the report. Highlights Based on our analysis of ED survey data from academic year 2007-08 to 2015-16: The proportion of undergraduate student veterans at for-profit schools taking [...]
Impact of Disability on First-Time Student Veterans’ Persistence and Attainment
Click here to download a PDF copy of this Issue Brief Highlights Among undergraduate veterans who enrolled in postsecondary education for the first time in 2011-12, 33% reported a disability, compared to 15% of non-veterans [...]
Annual and Cumulative Student Loan Debt Among Veterans Using and Not Using GI Bill Benefits
This Fact Sheet examines student loan borrowing in academic year 2015-16, comparing undergraduate veterans who received any GI Bill educational benefits (beneficiaries) to those who did not (nonbeneficiaries). In addition to their borrowing during that [...]
Weak Return on Investment at Trade Schools that Enroll GI Bill Beneficiaries
Highlights We found that student outcome data at Title IV- participating trade schools that enroll GI Bill beneficiaries in certificate programs showed a disappointing return-on-investment but robust retention and graduation rates (see table 1). For [...]
Should Colleges Spend the GI Bill on Veterans’ Education or Late Night TV Ads? And Which Colleges Offer the Best Instructional Bang for the GI Bill Buck?
Every year, around 700,000 Post-9/11 GI Bill students enroll in an institution of postsecondary education, a benefit earned through sacrifice and service to our nation. The GI Bill represents America’s thanks for veterans’ military [...]
School Accountability & Student Protections
Be Careful of Income Sharing Agreements
By Alex Kish At this point in the game, it might seem cliché to talk about the impact COVID-19 has had on higher education and how students have been forced online. But that doesn’t [...]
Issue Brief: Investigative Analysis: Advertising Trends for Selected Postsecondary Institutions during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Click here to download a PDF copy of the report. Click here to download the Appendix including screen-captured ads as part of the analysis. Highlights Our investigation examined how a [...]
COVID-19 and Postsecondary Enrollment: Lessons from the Last Recession
Click here to download a PDF of the report. On June 8, 2020, the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the U.S. economy had peaked in February 2020 and officially [...]
Schools with Repeat Law Enforcement Settlements
On March 9, 2020, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) notified five institutions of higher education that it possessed evidence they had violated Title 38 § 3696, which prohibits payments to schools that engage in [...]
2020 Toolkit for State Policymakers
Visit the website page here: https://vetsedsuccess.org/2020-toolkit-state-policymakers/
Are Student Veterans Going to be Denied Access to CARES Act Emergency Relief Funds?
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act authorized more than $6 billion in emergency cash grants “to students” enrolled in campus-based postsecondary education, to be distributed by their colleges. On April 9, 2020, [...]
GI Bill & Military Education Benefits
Issue Brief: Investigative Analysis: Advertising Trends for Selected Postsecondary Institutions during the COVID-19 Pandemic
Click here to download a PDF copy of the report. Click here to download the Appendix including screen-captured ads as part of the analysis. Highlights Our investigation examined how a [...]
Investigative Analysis: Advertising by For-Profit and Other Schools in Response to COVID-19
Statement by Veterans Education Success (August 5, 2020) - "Veterans Education Success regrets to inform you that this report has been removed. Although we are confident in our findings about the number of ads that [...]
COVID-19 and Postsecondary Enrollment: Lessons from the Last Recession
Click here to download a PDF of the report. On June 8, 2020, the National Bureau of Economic Research announced that the U.S. economy had peaked in February 2020 and officially [...]
Coronavirus-Related Legislation and Its Relevance to GI Bill and Other VA-Supported Students
Click here to download a PDF copy of the report. This paper is intended to serve as a primer on recent Public Laws and legislation intended to mitigate the economic impact of the coronavirus emergency [...]
SAS Global Forum 2020 Report: Post-9/11 GI Bill: Teasing Out Insights about Veterans’ Success in Postsecondary Education
By Walter Ochinko, Research Director, Veterans Education Success Abstract This paper (1) examines the challenges researchers face in using publicly available databases to track veterans use of GI Bill benefits and their success in earning [...]
The 85-15 Rule and Related GI Bill Safeguards
The impact of the 85-15 rule—a requirement that education programs enroll at least 15% non-veterans to ensure schools are not bilking VA, as occurred after WWII—has evolved over time. This Issue Brief presents the Congressional [...]
OUR FACT SHEETS
Short fact sheets on key issues.
Schools with Repeat Law Enforcement Settlements
On March 9, 2020, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) notified five institutions of higher education that it possessed evidence they had violated Title 38 § 3696, which prohibits payments to schools that engage in misleading advertising and recruiting. “The Secretary shall not approve the enrollment of an eligible veteran [...]
Are Student Veterans Going to be Denied Access to CARES Act Emergency Relief Funds?
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act authorized more than $6 billion in emergency cash grants “to students” enrolled in campus-based postsecondary education, to be distributed by their colleges. On April 9, 2020, Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos wrote to college presidents that they had “significant discretion on [...]
Oregon: Institutional Sector Comparisons
This fact sheet provides statistics comparing Oregon public, for-profit, and nonprofit postsecondary institutions with respect to: • Enrollment—total vs. students using the GI Bill and DOD Tuition Assistance, • Dollars received for students using the GI Bill and Tuition Assistance, • Federal student aid (grants and loans), and • Select [...]
Maryland: Institutional Sector Comparisons
This fact sheet provides statistics comparing Maryland public, for-profit, and nonprofit postsecondary institutions with respect to: Enrollment—total vs. students using the GI Bill and DOD Tuition Assistance, Dollars received for students using the GI Bill and Tuition Assistance, Federal student aid (grants and loans), and Select student outcomes—default and graduation [...]
New York: Institutional Sector Comparisons
This fact sheet provides statistics comparing New York public, for-profit, and nonprofit postsecondary institutions with respect to: Enrollment—total vs. students using the GI Bill and DOD Tuition Assistance, Dollars received for students using the GI Bill and Tuition Assistance, Federal student aid (grants and loans), and Select student outcomes—default and [...]
Analysis of Higher Education Relief Funds for Coronavirus: How Will They Be Allocated Across Institutional Sectors?
Click here to download a PDF copy of the factsheet. Higher education emergency relief funds authorized by § 18004 of P.L. 116-136, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES), are limited to institutions whose students were attending classes at a brick-and-mortar campus.[1] Funds are not available if students [...]
OUR LEGAL REPORTS
Veterans Education Success prepares legal analysis and trends in veteran student complaints.
Schools with Repeat Law Enforcement Settlements
On March 9, 2020, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) notified five institutions of higher education that it possessed evidence they had violated Title 38 § 3696, which prohibits payments to schools that engage in misleading advertising and recruiting. “The Secretary shall not approve the enrollment of an eligible veteran [...]
Veteran and Servicemember Complaints about Misconduct and Illegal Practices at ITT Technical Institute
What follows is a public version of a “trends analysis” document we prepared detailing the types of harm observed by us in our free legal services to service members, veterans, and their dependents who brought to our attention their complaints about ITT Technical Institute. Veteran and Servicemember Student Complaints about [...]
Summary of Veteran and Servicemember Student Complaints about Colorado Technical University
As part of our free legal assistance to students, Veterans Education Success receives complaints from students using veterans’ benefits, such as the GI Bill, to attend colleges and universities around the country. We received 228 veteran and servicemember complaints about Colorado Technical University. We analyzed those complaints for trends, and [...]
Summary of Veteran and Servicemember Student Complaints about Ashford University
As part of our free legal assistance to students, Veterans Education Success receives complaints from students using veterans’ benefits, such as the GI Bill, to attend colleges and universities around the country. We received 109 veteran and servicemember complaints about Ashford University. We analyzed those complaints for trends, and found: [...]
Summary of Veteran and Servicemember Student Complaints about American InterContinental University
As part of the free legal assistance we provide to students, Veterans Education Success receives complaints from students using veterans’ benefits, such as the GI Bill, to attend colleges and universities around the country. We received 144 veteran and servicemember complaints about American InterContinental University. We analyzed those complaints for [...]
Summary of Veteran and Servicemember Student Complaints about University of Phoenix
As part of the free legal assistance we provide to students, Veterans Education Success receives complaints from students using veterans’ benefits, such as the GI Bill, to attend colleges and universities around the country. We received 450 veteran and servicemember complaints about University of Phoenix. We analyzed those complaints for [...]
ISSUES
Policy issues of Veterans Education Success

Veterans Education Success seeks to ensure students have adequate protections and rights and also believes bad actor colleges should be held accountable if they’ve trampled on students’ rights. You will find research reports and coalition letters related to student protections and college accountability.