Lessons Learned — Separating and Applying to College.

I joined the Navy to go to college (I wanted the GI Bill). And I left the Navy to go to college (to use the GI Bill). I know, I know, it seems these days a lot of people argue that college isn’t that important. But for me, it was. Maybe my resolve comes from my non-degreed dad stressing the importance. Or maybe it comes from being enlisted, bossed around by officer’s who are the same age as you, because they have a college degree and you don’t.

Whatever the reason, here’s a couple lessons that I want to pass along, for those that have managed to separate or are close to doing so, and are gunning for that degree. Please note that these ramblings are simply my opinion.

First off, let’s set the backdrop. When I was still active duty, there were a lot of courses offered through the on-base “branch of service” college. Here’s what I figured out.

There are some accredited schools that people attend, while working 70 hours a week and never sleeping. Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute comes to mind. And those are completely legitimate. And HARD, LIKE REAL COLLEGE. I completely believe those courses are a worthwhile pursuit. Good on ya.

All those PACE courses and non accredited classes you took while active duty, that all your friends and bosses and their bosses told you are worth it, will probably not help you as a transfer student.

A great friend of mind got out and applied to Seattle University. He attached his SMART transcript, which had all of these PACE courses he had taken while in. SU’s response was “You have enough credits to be a transfer student, but none of your credits count. Denied.”

There are also a lot of schools out there who take advantage of Active Duty Military tuition assistance. They charge outrageous amounts, which the military pays for, for a degree/certificate that is comprised of a bunch of classes that only apply toward that specific school. (Of course their are exceptions to this statement.) Most will not count as transfer credits either. Sorry.

For instance, I took a “Microsoft Office Skills Course” that gave me a laptop and taught me some basic skills online. For $3000 (which the Navy paid for), I got a $250 Dell laptop, and 20 hours of “online training” where I watched videos of someone clicking through Word, Excel, etc. (note: I was not supplied Microsoft Office). The helpful employee at our local Navy College said it definitely would count toward my General Education Requirements. Right.

So. Let’s look at two options.

ONE. If you have decent high school grades: Figure out what schools you want to go to. Go to their .edu to find out their minimum requirements (GPA, Entrance exam scores, entrance essay). Just like in high school, go to the military college office and sign up to take the SAT or ACT. Apply as a freshman, not as a transfer student. Make sure you know when the application is due. And apply! It’s really that simple!

I believe that many transitioning military think they need to be a transfer student to get Vet Preference for entrance. That’s not true. You can distinguish yourself as a veteran, for admission purposes, irregardless.

TWO. If you struggled in high school, and didn’t have a decent GPA, you’re going to want to go the junior college route. At least in California, you simply register to begin taking classes, no admission requirements exist. Once you take enough courses, you’ll be able to legitimately apply as a transfer student to a four year.

I still sent in my SMART transcript after I was accepted as a freshman at California State University, Sacramento for evaluation. I was a Navy Nuke, and had spent 1.5 years at the Naval Nuclear Power Training Command. I had taken 3 KLEP exams and passed 2 PACE courses. I received: 3 credits for my Physical Education, Area E General Education requirement (bootcamp) and 27 General Credits. Do you know what General Credits are good for? Nothing. They did however make a me a super senior, targeted by the university for “not graduating on time”.

I’d like to post a huge disclaimer: I know many other people navigated Navy College successfully and got a college degree while active duty. Maybe you even got your college degree using one of the paths that I say won’t help. You were probably in longer than 4 years, which would give you far more time to pursue your degree through those pre-negotiated routes. I’m simply talking about my personal experience, and have no intention of discrediting your efforts.

Next post: Talk about the FAFSA, Getting the GI Bill started, What a VA Office on campus is good for.