A quantitative study on perception and satisfaction among student veterans in higher education before and after implementation of a one-stop veteran student support center
Date
Authors
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Abstract
Since 2001, more than five million veterans have used education benefits through either the Montgomery GI Bill or the Post-9/11 GI Bill to attend postsecondary institutions. Along with the unique perspective this group of students brings to a college campus also comes the need for intentional support services to help them be successful. Previous research shows that perception of an institution as a veteran friendly campus matters to student veterans. Research also shows a linkage between satisfaction and perception. Consequently, the purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the relationship between satisfaction with support services and perception of an institution as a veteran friendly campus that can inform organizational change as needed. This study used quantitative survey research using the Student Veterans Needs Assessment Survey to answer four main research questions before and after implementation of a one-stop student veteran support services center. Participants answered questions to assess their levels of importance placed on and satisfaction with support services. Participants were also asked if they perceived the institution as a veteran friendly campus. The study was conducted at one institution with 248 student veterans participants. Descriptive statistics, comparisons, correlations, and linear regression analysis were used to answer the research questions. This study revealed four key conclusions: 1) student veterans placed the highest level of importance on financial aid and healthcare services; 2) student veterans were consistently satisfied with financial aid, degree retention/completion, and social acculturation services; 3) the perception of the campus as veteran friendly increased; and 4) there is a positive relationship between satisfaction and perception at the institution.