Absence of conflict of interest.
Citation
Barr, A. C. (2015). Fighting for Education: Financial Aid and Non-traditional Students. (Doctoral dissertation). Online Archive of University of Virginia Scholarship. https://doi.org/10.18130/V35Z6S.
Highlights
- The study’s objective was to examine the effects of Post-9/11 GI Bill on veterans’ college enrollment and degree attainment. The author investigated similar research questions in another study, the profile of which is available [here].
- The study used regression methods in a nonexperimental analysis, drawing on data from Defense Manpower Data Center, the National Student Clearinghouse, and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. The author used two statistical models to compare veterans eligible for the benefits with veterans who were not eligible.
- The study found a statistically significant positive relationship between the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits and education for veterans who were eligible for the benefits and likely to take them up compared with veterans who were not eligible for the benefits and with veterans who were eligible but unlikely to take up the benefits.
- The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the author did not ensure that the groups being compared were similar before the intervention. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Post-9/11 GI Bill; other factors are likely to have contributed.
Intervention Examined
Post-9/11 GI Bill
Features of the Intervention
This study focuses on the expansion of education benefits for veterans under the Post-9/11 GI Bill. The bill, which took effect in August 2009, retroactively provided additional education benefits to people who served in active duty after September 11, 2001. The Post-9/11 GI Bill roughly doubled the average maximum benefit amounts from the prior iteration of the GI Bill. Benefits under the bill include in-state tuition, fees, a housing allowance, and a stipend for books. Maximum benefit levels vary by state and are based on the highest tuition and fee level of any public institution in the veteran’s state of residence. Veteran students who are enrolled for more than half-time are also eligible for a monthly housing allowance.
Features of the Study
The study used statistical models to estimate the effects of the Post-9/11 GI Bill in a nonexperimental analysis. The author used two models to compare college enrollment and degree attainment of veterans eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits with veterans who were not eligible for the benefits. First, the author compared educational attainment of the treatment group (veterans eligible for the benefits who exited the military from 2007 to 2008 and were more likely to take up the benefits) with that of a comparison group (veterans who exited the military from 2002 to 2004 who were eligible for the benefits but much less likely to take advantage of the GI Bill benefits because the bill was not passed until 2009, many years after their separation with the military). By the time the bill took effect in 2009, the members of the comparison group likely had either enrolled in school already or moved on to other professions by the time the benefits were available, so they were not interested in returning to school at that time. Second, the author compared veterans eligible for the benefits with veterans who were not eligible for the benefits because they received a dishonorable discharge from the military. For the second comparison, the author examined the differential trends in the outcomes for the two groups, before and after the Post-9/11 GI Bill took effect, covering the period of 2002 to 2008. The author assessed outcomes five and six years following the veteran’s separation from the military.
For both models, the author used data from the Defense Manpower Data Center, the National Student Clearinghouse, and the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System. There were 14,224 people in the first estimation strategy and 15,457 people in the second estimation strategy. The sample was limited to people ages 22 to 39 who exited the military from 2002 to 2008 with less than a bachelor's degree at the date of military separation.
Findings
Education
- The study found that veterans who exited the military from 2007 to 2008 were 5 to 7 percentage points more likely to obtain an associate’s degree or higher within either five or six years of military separation compared with veterans who exited from 2002 to 2004 (who were eligible for the benefits but unlikely to take them up). The study also found that veterans eligible for the GI benefits were 5 to 6 percentage points more likely to obtain an associate’s degree or higher within either five or six years of military separation compared with veterans who were ineligible for the benefits.
- The study found that veterans eligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits who exited the military from 2007 to 2008 were 4 to 5 percentage points more likely to obtain a bachelor’s degree or higher within five or six years of military separation compared with veterans who exited from 2002 to 2004 (who were eligible for the benefits but unlikely to take them up). The study also found that veterans eligible for the GI benefits were 3 to 5 percentage points more likely to obtain a bachelor’s degree or higher within either five or six years of military separation compared with veterans who were ineligible for the benefits.
- The study found an 8 percentage point increase in college enrollment before and after the Post-9/11 GI Bill for veterans eligible for the benefits compared with veterans who were not eligible for the benefits.
Considerations for Interpreting the Findings
In both models, the author controls for age, race, and gender and accounts for education before the introduction of the Post-9/11 GI Bill by limiting the sample to those with a high school degree but without a college degree. But the author does not account for socioeconomic status measured before introduction of the Post-9/11 GI Bill.
In addition, for the second model, the study used veterans who did not receive an honorable discharge—and hence were ineligible for the Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits—as a comparison group. There were likely differences in unobservable characteristics between veterans who received an honorable discharge and those who did not, and these characteristics could affect their educational trajectories.
Finally, the implementation of the Post-9/11 GI Bill corresponded with the onset of the Great Recession, which might have altered the enrollment behaviors of the treatment and comparison groups, because it was more challenging to find a job, and, therefore, attending college might have been more preferable.
Causal Evidence Rating
The quality of causal evidence presented in this report is low because the author did not ensure that the groups being compared were similar before the intervention. This means we are not confident that the estimated effects are attributable to the Post-9/11 GI Bill; other factors are likely to have contributed.