Transitions from Military Duty to College for United States Military Veterans

Transitions from Military Duty to College for United States Military Veterans by Velma DeWitt Layne III MA, West Virginia University, 2010 BA, West Virginia University, 2008 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education Walden University June, 2016 Abstract Some veterans transitioning from military duty to the classroom are not obtaining college degrees. The purpose of this study was to investigate student veterans’ perceptions of the transition services and support systems at their college that might impact the challenges they face while pursuing a college degree. The theoretical framework for this study was Schlossberg’s Theory of Transition. The guiding research question asked how military veterans perceived the transition services and support systems at their university in the context of their decision to obtain their degrees. A purposeful sampling approach was used for selecting student veteran participants who had returned from active duty and were enrolled at the university for 1 year. Moustakas’s transcendental approach was the model used for interviewing 12 veterans. Inductive analysis was used to analyze data, including coding the interview transcripts and identifying themes to capture the collective experience of the veterans. Participants indicated that existing emotional or social support programs, organizations, and personnel to assist them on campus were inadequate. Implications for social change include increasing faculty and staff understanding of veterans’ needs, which may lead to improved transition services, support systems, and communications within the university. Results may be used to improve retention and degree completion rates of student veterans.Some veterans transitioning from military duty to the classroom are not obtaining college degrees. The purpose of this study was to investigate student veterans’ perceptions of the transition services and support systems at their college that might impact the challenges they face while pursuing a college degree. The theoretical framework for this study was Schlossberg’s Theory of Transition. The guiding research question asked how military veterans perceived the transition services and support systems at their university in the context of their decision to obtain their degrees. A purposeful sampling approach was used for selecting student veteran participants who had returned from active duty and were enrolled at the university for 1 year. Moustakas’s transcendental approach was the model used for interviewing 12 veterans. Inductive analysis was used to analyze data, including coding the interview transcripts and identifying themes to capture the collective experience of the veterans. Participants indicated that existing emotional or social support programs, organizations, and personnel to assist them on campus were inadequate. Implications for social change include increasing faculty and staff understanding of veterans’ needs, which may lead to improved transition services, support systems, and communications within the university. Results may be used to improve retention and degree completion rates of student veterans. Transitions from Military Duty to College for United States Military Veterans by Velma DeWitt Layne III MA, West Virginia University, 2010 BA, West Virginia University, 2008 Doctoral Study Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education Walden University June, 2016 Dedication I dedicate this doctoral study to my son, Stuart, whom I love dearly and will miss each and every day of my life. Son, I will see you in the afterlife in God’s kingdom: A precious one from us has gone A voice we love is stilled A place is vacant in our homeWhich never can be filled And after a lovely heartache And many a silent tear, But always a beautiful memoryOf one we love so dear.