OSU named a top school for veterans for 6th-straight year

Friday, June 18, 2021

Media Contact: Monica Roberts | Director of Media Relations | 405-744-4800 | monica.roberts@okstate.edu

Oklahoma State University has been named a top institution for student veterans by the Military Times.

OSU has been ranked in the top 100 for the last six years of the poll, which has been conducted for a little over a decade.

The top-ranked school in Oklahoma, OSU also checks in as the eighth-ranked school in the Southwest and sits at 76th for public institutions and 92nd overall.

The overall ranking is a bit of a drop from its 2020 ranking of 69th, but the OSU system has the luxury of having two of its institutions make the grade with the OSU Institute of Technology in Okmulgee checking in at No. 106.

OSU-Stillwater scored an overall 90 grade with a graduation rate of 81 percent of students who are veterans.

“I will say this accomplishment comes at a time when our university had to change their approach to serving student veterans during a pandemic,” said Vincent Rivera, coordinator of OSU’s Office of Student Veteran Success. “To be able to remain a destination for student veterans and their families is an honor. The needs of student veterans are ever-evolving. In order to keep up with this evolution, new programs, initiatives and support services are being developed for the Fall 2021 semester and beyond; and the office looks forward to moving up the ranks of the ‘Best Of’ list in the future.”

OSU provides an education to 274 student veterans and 74 active-duty military personnel along with 117 reservists and National Guard personnel who are using Veteran Affairs educational benefits. The university serves hundreds of military dependents and has 131 faculty and staff who are veterans, Rivera said.

OSU’s Office of Student Veteran Success helps veteran and military-affiliated students transition into and out of college through coordination on campus, in the community and with state and federal organizations. It offers reintegration counseling, help in filing benefit claims, emergency funding, monthly luncheons, Veterans Day week activities, a Women Veterans Symposium each spring, and focused efforts during Suicide Prevention Awareness Month.

Veterans’ services also include space to study, counseling on VA and Department of Defense benefits, mentorship programs and career advising.

The annual survey took answers and federal data from more than 300 schools. More than 70 questions sought details about the costs, programs, policies and services that affect military-connected students. Federal data from the U.S. Departments of Education, Veterans Affairs and Defense were also considered.

Military Times is an independent news agency covering issues of importance to service members and their families.
To see the rankings, visit here.