VetLink Partnerships
One unique aspect of Service to School's offerings to veterans is its VetLink Partnership program with select top universities. In this section, we will explain what VetLink Partnerships are, and what it means for you as an applicant.
VetLink is a partnership between Service to School and select colleges and universities committed to increasing veteran enrollment on their campuses. VetLink partners represent the most academically distinguished and high-performing institutions of higher education.
Eligibility is limited to fewer than 10% of the more than 5000 accredited colleges in the U.S. At the top of the eligibility criteria is a graduation rate of 70% or above. VetLink partners must also spend at least 50% of their tuition and fee revenue on instructional costs. Lastly, but no less important, is demonstrated evidence of access, affordability, and success for all admitted students.
The current list of VetLink schools is available at: https://service2school.org/vetlink/
Through VetLink, you have the opportunity to showcase your military service and academic preparedness as part of the application process. This is accomplished primarily through the submission of the VetLink Addendum (discussed in the next chapter), but also occurs through regular conversations between the S2S team and the school’s office of admissions.
You will be introduced to our dedicated points of contact at each school. This gets you past the gatekeepers and to the front door where you can talk directly to senior admissions officers and veteran services staff about the application process, understand more about being a competitive applicant, and learn more about the school itself to determine fit and suitability.
You will also be assigned to an S2S VetLink Advisor who will work directly with the schools you are interested in to advocate on your behalf and to address any issues that may arise due to the unique nature of military service. Your S2S VetLink Advisor is also available to you and your S2S Ambassador for questions and assistance.
The majority of the veterans we work with do not apply to a VetLink partner school. And those who do almost always also apply to non-VetLink schools. VetLink is too small a slice of higher education to be your only choice. And there are a great many choices that are a great fit regardless of your preferences.
Regardless of your plans, you will be paired from the same pool of Ambassadors that VetLink applicants are paired with and you will have access to the same S2S team members who are assigned as VetLink Advisors. Furthermore, if we have contacts at other schools you are interested in, we will make similar introductions.
