The University of West Florida ranks fifth in the nation on Victory Media’s 2018 list of “military friendly” schools, marking the tenth year that UWF has earned the designation.
“We take good care of all our veterans and families,” said Marc Churchwell, director of UWF’s Military and Veterans Resource Center. “To be compared against all the other institutions in the country and to be ranked No. 5 is a huge boost and validation in saying we’re doing it right.”
Victory Media used both public data sources and responses from a proprietary survey completed by each school to determine which institutions earn the military friendly designation, officials said. More than 1,300 schools participated in the survey, with 849 earning the designation. Final ratings were determined by combining each institution’s survey scores with the assessment of its ability to meet thresholds for student retention, graduation, job placement, loan repayment, persistence, and loan default rates for all students and specifically for student veterans.
Churchwell said that approximately 24 percent of UWF’s student population is affiliated with the military, including active duty, veteran, National Guard, or military reserves and dependent spouses or children.
The MVRC serves as a campus advocate for military, dependents and veteran students, working to ensure the needs of these individuals are met through coordinating with multiple university offices and services. The center provides assistance with Veterans Affairs education benefits; active duty tuition assistance; out-of-state fee waivers; academic advising coordination; tutoring; counseling; disability accommodations; referral to state and federal resources and services; and more.
The 2017-2018 Military Friendly® Schools list was published in the December issue of G.I. Jobs magazine and can be found at www.militaryfriendly.com.
For more information about the UWF Military and Veterans Resource Center, visit uwf.edu/mvrc.