Check out these five advice articles if you are looking to better serve your women veterans on campus.

6 Ways Colleges Can Better Support Female Student Veterans

Supporting our female veteran students has become of greater significance, since they are the fastest-growing demographic in the military. Finding ways to better serve their unique needs is of utmost importance. Challenges for female veterans include access to healthcare, higher rates of divorce, depression, anxiety, and trauma, among others. On campus, female students may be harder to engage. Ways to help this population include protecting confidentiality, partnering with resource and career centers, encouraging mentor opportunities, utilizing financial aid services and grants, and acknowledging women who have served or are serving.

Why Universities Should Hire More Female Veterans

Why should higher education hire more women veterans? Women veterans help meet recruitment, retention, and DEI goals. Women veterans also have a natural bias towards service, are well educated, and are a diverse and inclusive group. Women veterans face underemployment rates higher than their female civilian and male veteran counterparts. Higher education has a chance to lead the world when it comes to providing employment and leadership opportunities for women veterans.

Moving Forward: Serving Women Student Veterans in Higher Education

How do we support female veterans on campus? Women student veterans account for about 31% of students enrolled in higher education; they may be managing challenges with mental health, physical disabilities, and acquiring financial resources, among others. One significant challenge for women veterans is mental health, which can impact the ability to function in many areas of life. Institutions of higher education should offer environments of trust and connectedness, mentoring services, women specific support groups, among others, which would impact the overall good of the institution.

Title IX Protections for Women Students

Title IX prohibits discrimination of women athletes and protects women from sexual harassment at educational institutions that receive federal funds. It also protects pregnant women, requiring educational institutions to work with these students to reduce barriers to obtaining an education. Title IX coordinators can educate their institutions about the protections for pregnant students. Administrators should know the law so that they can partner with leaders on campus to create, maintain, and communicate Title IX-compliant policies. Faculty can adopt a posture of openness to support pregnant students and extend accommodations.

Leveraging Grit: Advice for Those Serving Women Student Veterans

Specific experiences within the military create challenges for women student veterans, and support professionals need to understand the potential barriers to this population's success. For those who serve in roles supporting women student veterans, engage in professional development opportunities that focus on student veteran culture, evaluate your institution's support efforts for these learners, and provide personalized support to women student veterans. Get to know your student veteran learner, be an active participant in their learning, understand their eagerness to succeed, and provide roadmaps of their educational plan. Further, leverage the strengths of this population by encouraging them to share their experiences and take on leadership roles.

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Article Topics

Military Friendly Institutions Serving Military in HigherEd Veterans Academic Success Women Veterans Working as a Veteran in HigherEd Workplace Inclusion

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