The City of Boca Raton was recently recognized as one of the best cities in the nation for veterans and military members seeking a high-quality and vet-friendly education. College Factual, a free website that helps students find their best college fit by analyzing and reporting on thousands of data points, named the City in their 2019 Best Colleges for Veterans rankings. Veteran affordability and availability of resources as well as overall college quality were considered when developing these rankings.
According to College Factual, there are an estimated 5,506 veterans living in Boca Raton. About 2,515 of those students are using the GI Bill at universities and colleges this year such as Lynn University, Palm Beach State College (PBSC) and Florida Atlantic University (FAU). Each one of these colleges has extensive programs, services and resources for the veterans that attend.
With veterans enrolled in Boca Raton universities, each school provides trained professionals to assist with admission information, financial aid assistance, resources and programs to ensure the success of each student enrolled. Financial aid such as education grants and scholarships are available to all military personnel, veterans and even, their families.
At PBSC, about 30 veterans are awarded with $40,000 annually through the IBIS Friends of Veterans Scholarship. PBSC also participates in a Veterans Grant program that awards $168,000 per year to about 210 qualified veterans.
This year, FAU provided $23,406 scholarships to Military and Veteran students for emergency relief and tuition gap scholarships as well as $10,000 in tuition assistance from the Palm Beach Investment Research Group for two veteran scholars.
Lynn University is also a participant of the Yellow Ribbon GI Education Enhancement Program, where the institution can contribute up to 50% of tuition expenses and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) will match the same amount. For the 2017-2018 academic year, Lynn University’s commitment to the Yellow Ribbon program was capped at $13,000 with a match of $13,000 from the VA. With additional Chapter 33 benefits already covering $21,084 in tuition costs, the program paid up to $47,084 per veteran.
All three institutions also offer additional resources to veterans and military personnel through designated resource centers, programs and support groups. FAU has a Military and Veterans Student Success Center on campus that provides activities and programs that are intended to enhance student success while creating a platform for veterans to engage with the community. One of these programs is FAU’s Veterans Entrepreneurship program that is designed to translate military skills to entrepreneurship through a 15-week training and mentoring program. The center has also submitted 1305 certifications for VA education benefits for active duty service members, veterans and dependents. This amounted to $4,350,638.33 in tuition payment.
PBSC also has resource centers at their multiple campuses including Boca Raton, that provide a place where veterans and military personnel can get support, academic and career advising, financial aid assistance, benefits counseling and disability services. Each center also features a student veterans club that provides veterans with the resources, support and advocacy needed to succeed in higher education and following graduation. Lynn University also has trained professionals on staff to provide veterans with a personalized and unique experience while attending the university.
In addition to this recognition, PBSC was recognized by Military Times as one of the “2019 Best for Vets Colleges,” Military Friendly’s “2019 -2020 Top 10 Military Friendly School,” Military Friendly’s “2019-2020 Top Spouse School” and the Military Advanced Education and Transition’s “2018 Top Colleges and Universities.” FAU has also been rated nine consecutive years by Military Times Publication as “Military Friendly” and consistently rated “Best for Vets” by GI Jobs Publication.
