UNG makes Military Friendly Schools list

For the seventh time in eight years, the University of North Georgia (UNG) has been named to the Military Friendly Schools list released by Victory Media.

UNG received its best scores in culture and commitment, where the university exceeded the Military Friendly standard by 56%, as well as military student support and retention, which exceeded the standard by almost 49%.

"It shows our military-connected students that we're committed to serving and supporting them," said Christy Orr, assistant director of student life for Veteran and Adult Learner Programs (VALP) at UNG. "VALP continues to research new ways that we can serve our students and get them more college credit for their military training and occupations."

Each year, the list is provided to service members and their families, helping them select the best college, university or trade school to receive the education and training needed to pursue a civilian career. Institutions earning the Military Friendly School designation were evaluated using public data sources and responses from Victory Media's proprietary survey. 

The 2020-21 list will be published in the May issue of "G.I. Jobs" magazine.

Matthew Lucent, a Huntsville, Alabama, native and a senior pursuing a degree in strategic and security studies, is a VALP student worker on UNG's Dahlonega Campus. He served 12 years of active duty in the Army and said he appreciates the ability to use the Veterans Resource Center and take part in the Student Veterans of America.

"VALP and the SVA provide the kind of community veterans need for the challenges they face," Lucent said.

Ratings methodology, criteria and weightings were determined by Victory Media with input from the Military Friendly Advisory Council of independent leaders in the higher education and military recruitment community. Final ratings were determined by combining each institution's survey scores with the assessment of the institution's ability to meet thresholds for student retention, graduation, job placement, loan repayment, persistence (degree advancement or transfer), and loan default rates for all students and, specifically, for student veterans.

UNG has several initiatives aimed at assisting active duty service members and veterans:

• VALP is the point-of-contact concierge for adult and veteran students and provides advisement as requested, American Council on Education transcript reviews, portfolio counseling, career advisement, and mentoring.
• The Veterans Resource Center on the Dahlonega Campus and the Military Resource Center on the Gainesville Campus each have lounge space, computer stations, free printing, and a kitchenette.
• UNG offers "Green Zone" training to aid faculty and staff in their efforts to help student veterans identify and connect with the appropriate resources.
• UNG awards college credit for military training, accepts transfer credits, and offers distance learning and online classes, all initiatives identified in the state's Complete College Georgia plans. Two graduate degree programs popular with members of the military and veterans, criminal justice and international affairs, are offered completely online.

UNG is one of only six senior military colleges in the country and is designated as The Military College of Georgia. Each year, UNG commissions some 100 graduating cadets as second lieutenants into the U.S. Army or Army National Guard.