“The Military Taught Me How to Study, How to Work Hard”: Helping Student-Veterans Transition by Building on Their Strengths

Community colleges are experiencing growing numbers of student veterans. Unfortunately, much training for faculty and staff tends to stem from a deficit mindset: the focus is on remediating what student veterans lack rather than building on their unique strengths. Training programs, courses, and college interventions that acknowledge and build on the strengths student veterans bring from the military to the academy will likely be more effective than those that focus solely on lack. This article identifies three key strengths characteristic to student veterans, connects them to current research on student success, and recommends ways colleges can build upon these strengths to support student-veterans’ transition to college.