Important Factors to Consider (Veteran Voices)
Important Factors to Consider (Veteran Voices)
Transcript
I feel like when finding the right-fit college or the right-fit school, there's a lot of factors that can vary from person to person. And I feel like once you put those on the table and evaluate, you will find that-- by doing research-- a lot of schools could fit those needs or those wants that are definitely things that you want to consider-- for example, the city, the size of the school, the major, extracurricular activities. There's a lot of factors.
And of course, the cost-- so important, the proximity to other family members, all those things are to be taken into account. But it is important to also know that unless you live the college experience organically, on the campus, you can't really say that that college won't fit. So therefore, I feel like once you put the pros and cons and you do your analysis of what school you want to attend, a lot of different schools may be able to fit those needs or wants that you're looking for.
Some of the most important things, I think, veterans should consider when deciding to go to university is first, does the education match up with your future prospects, or exactly what you want to pursue? So if you haven't thought about what you want to pursue as a career, or any sort of long term goals, I think you should give that the most amount of thought.
And when I was in the Marine Corps, hanging out in the dorms, playing Xbox, I didn't really give any thought of that. It's maybe easy for me to say, think about your future. But it actually takes a good amount of time to figure out exactly-- OK, shoot. What do I want to do? What interests me? What do I want from an education? So I think that's one of the bigger factors.
The other factor is-- for me-- I knew coming out of the environment, and the Marine Corps and an infantry battalion, the brotherhood and kind of camaraderie. I knew that it would be most beneficial for me to have a similar environment transitioning to school, especially since I wasn't going to have any of the structure that I was used to while in the Marine Corps-- someone telling me you've got to be in formation at 6 AM, or running, or what have you. I knew I was the type of individual that as soon as I got out and all that structure went away, that I was going to indulge in sleeping in and stuff like that.
So I knew-- once I decided I wanted to pursue education, one of the other important factors was, how do I recreate that brotherhood or that camaraderie or that team environment? And so in doing so, I looked at universities that actually had walk-on programs for different varsity athletics. And I give that my shot. And fortunately, I was able to walk onto a rowing team.
And that has been life-changing. It has absolutely changed how I approach school and everything, because I'm accountable not only to myself now, but to my teammates. And that's just a small example. There can be other clubs or other initiatives on campus that could help draw in a veteran that may help keep them scheduled or disciplined as they pursue education.
And of course, the cost-- so important, the proximity to other family members, all those things are to be taken into account. But it is important to also know that unless you live the college experience organically, on the campus, you can't really say that that college won't fit. So therefore, I feel like once you put the pros and cons and you do your analysis of what school you want to attend, a lot of different schools may be able to fit those needs or wants that you're looking for.
Some of the most important things, I think, veterans should consider when deciding to go to university is first, does the education match up with your future prospects, or exactly what you want to pursue? So if you haven't thought about what you want to pursue as a career, or any sort of long term goals, I think you should give that the most amount of thought.
And when I was in the Marine Corps, hanging out in the dorms, playing Xbox, I didn't really give any thought of that. It's maybe easy for me to say, think about your future. But it actually takes a good amount of time to figure out exactly-- OK, shoot. What do I want to do? What interests me? What do I want from an education? So I think that's one of the bigger factors.
The other factor is-- for me-- I knew coming out of the environment, and the Marine Corps and an infantry battalion, the brotherhood and kind of camaraderie. I knew that it would be most beneficial for me to have a similar environment transitioning to school, especially since I wasn't going to have any of the structure that I was used to while in the Marine Corps-- someone telling me you've got to be in formation at 6 AM, or running, or what have you. I knew I was the type of individual that as soon as I got out and all that structure went away, that I was going to indulge in sleeping in and stuff like that.
So I knew-- once I decided I wanted to pursue education, one of the other important factors was, how do I recreate that brotherhood or that camaraderie or that team environment? And so in doing so, I looked at universities that actually had walk-on programs for different varsity athletics. And I give that my shot. And fortunately, I was able to walk onto a rowing team.
And that has been life-changing. It has absolutely changed how I approach school and everything, because I'm accountable not only to myself now, but to my teammates. And that's just a small example. There can be other clubs or other initiatives on campus that could help draw in a veteran that may help keep them scheduled or disciplined as they pursue education.