ERIC Number: ED562025
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2014-May
Pages: 87
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
VA Education Benefits: VA Should Strengthen Its Efforts to Help Veterans Make Informed Education Choices. Report to Congressional Requesters. GAO-14-324
Emrey-Arras, Melissa
US Government Accountability Office
In fiscal year 2013, VA provided over $12 billion in benefits for veterans' postsecondary education; however, questions have been raised as to whether some schools are receiving these funds as a result of inappropriate recruiting practices. GAO was asked to examine issues related to schools' recruitment of veterans. This report examines (1) how selected schools recruit veterans, (2) veterans' school search and recruiting experiences, and (3) VA's actions to help veterans make informed decisions and to identify inappropriate recruiting practices. For the first question, GAO interviewed officials from 9 schools and reviewed websites of 30 additional schools; both groups were selected for variation in sector (public, nonprofit, and for-profit) and other criteria. For the second question, GAO surveyed a nationally representative group of student veterans, producing results generalizable to the student veteran population. For the third question, GAO reviewed relevant federal requirements and agency documents and interviewed agency officials. GAO also spoke with veteran and higher education organizations. GAO recommends that VA improve outreach and accessibility of its educational counseling services and more consistently develop and communicate realistic timelines as it implements initiatives based on federal requirements. VA agreed with GAO's recommendations and noted its current efforts to improve its outreach and planning efforts. The Department of Education had no comments on our findings or recommendations. The following are appended: (1) Objectives, Scope, and Methodology; (2) Survey of Veterans' Educational Decisions; (3) Comments from the Department of Veterans Affairs; (4) Comments from the Department of Education; and (5) GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments. [In addition to the GAO contact, Melissa Emrey-Arras, Michelle St. Pierre (Assistant Director), Carl Barden, Deborah Bland, Kathleen van Gelder, Mark M. Glickman, Nathan Gottfried, Kirsten Lauber, Theresa Lo, Ashley McCall, Sheila McCoy, Amanda Miller, John Mingus, Andrew Nelson, Mimi Nguyen, Anna Maria Ortiz, Carl Ramirez, Mark Ward, James Whitcomb, and Craig Winslow made key contributions to this report.]
Descriptors: Public Agencies, Veterans, Veterans Education, Postsecondary Education, Student Recruitment, Interviews, Web Sites, National Surveys, Student Surveys, Content Analysis, School Choice, Educational Counseling, Outreach Programs, Access to Information, Federal Legislation
US Government Accountability Office. 441 G Street NW, Washington, DC 20548. Tel: 202-512-6000; Web site: http://www.gao.gov
Publication Type: Reports - Evaluative; Numerical/Quantitative Data
Education Level: Adult Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: Policymakers
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: US Government Accountability Office
Identifiers - Laws, Policies, & Programs: G I Bill
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A