Counseling Services
Resources For Returning War Veterans
Moving from War to Academic Zones
The transition of a veteran from combat to a college
environment produces a unique set of challenges and stresses. Some of these are
observable and apparent: a 'ruc sac' is exchanged for a book bag, a 'mess tent'
is replaced by a dining hall, and camouflage gives way to school colors. Most
transitional issues, however, are far more subtle and complex
The challenges faced by veterans who transition to academic
settings include:
- Developing
a primary identity other than as a service member.
- Difficulty
relating to and connecting with traditional college students. Age
differences and the experience of combat (e.g., bullets whizzing by,
mortar attacks, roadside bombs) frequently cause veterans to feel
different than and alienated from traditional college students. Typical
student concerns like grades, parties, and joining organizations seldom
have the same significance to veterans, who often voice a sense of greater
maturity and seriousness than traditional students. The felt alienation
can be exacerbated on politically charged campuses where antiwar protests
occur.
- Finding
importance and meaning in experiences and ideas that are not
life-or-death. Campus life and concerns may seem trivial compared to those
found in combat.
- Negotiating
the structural and procedural differences between the military and higher
education bureaucracies (e.g., knowing the rules and mores of the campus,
where to go to get things done, how to address professors and others in
positions of authority).
- Making
a much greater number of decisions in a far more complex world. While the
potential consequences of a combatant's decisions are staggering, the
total number of autonomous daily decisions is quite small when compared to
college life.
- Developing
a sense of safety and comfort on campus (e.g., choosing classroom seats
that allow for monitoring of others and rapid escape, such as sitting with
their back to the wall and near a door).
- Boredom
(e.g., transitioning from the adrenaline rush experienced in the 'high' of
battle)
- Having
difficulty returning to their previous roles (as parent, spouse, children
of their parents). The wartime experience often changes a veteran's
worldview, life priorities, and goals.
These issues, when coupled with the challenges related to
returning to general civilian life, place returning veteran students at a
significantly higher risk of experiencing personal dissatisfaction and dropping
out.
Resource: James Madison University Counseling Center for Returning War Veterans
