Stockton College Named ‘Best for Vets’ By Military Times

The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey has been named to the Best for Vets: Colleges 2014 listing by Military Times, an organization comprised of the  Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times and Marine Corps Times.

Stockton is ranked # 15 on the list of four-year schools. Military Times also rated two-year and non-traditional/online schools, for a total of 120 schools ranked out of the 600 competing for consideration.

“Stockton is deeply honored to be recognized for its Veteran Affairs program, and particularly when the Military Times is placing a strong emphasis on academic rigor,” said President Herman Saatkamp. “Our distinctive veterans and service men and women deserve all the support and recognition the college can provide.”

Best for Vets: Colleges 2014 utilizes a 150-question analysis of a school’s complete offerings for veterans. Military Times said a school’s academic rigor was highly valued this year in scoring its fourth annual survey. Academic rigor involves a school’s culture of high expectations and support for students to achieve at high levels.

“As with all of the Best for Vets rankings, Best for Vets: Colleges  is an editorially independent news project that evaluates the many factors that make an institution a good fit for military veterans,” said Amanda Miller, editor of Military Times EDGE.

Best for Vets is designed to provide service men and women with a gauge by which they can judge whether a school or degree program will benefit them. The rankings factored in service member enrollment, percentage of tuition covered by the GI Bill, and availability of specific programs to help service members.

The extensive evaluation process also factored in statistics commonly used to track student success and academic quality, including student loan default rates, retention rates, graduation rates and student-faculty ratio.

Stockton’s program, founded in 2008, now serves 400 veterans and service members. Through the Office of Veteran Affairs, headed by Thomas J. O’Donnell, assistant dean of Students/Veteran Affairs, veterans and service members can explore eligibility for G.I. education benefits, receive referrals to a wide range of support services and connect with their fellow veterans by becoming a part of Stockton’s Student Veterans Organization.

Best for Vets rankings are published in full in the November issue of Military Times EDGE magazine, a publication for military transition, and online at MilitaryTimes.com, as well as ArmyTimes.com, NavyTimes.com, AirForceTimes.com and MarineCorpsTimes.com.

The top 30 four-year schools, top 10 online and nontraditional schools, and top 10 two-year schools are compared in the issues of Army Times, Navy Times, Air Force Times and Marine Corps Times on newsstands the week of Veterans Day.

Military Times’ series of Best for Vets survey-based rankings include: Colleges, Career & Technical Colleges, Business Schools, Franchises, Employers and Law Enforcement.

Military Times is published by Gannett Government Media. For more information, visit www.militarytimes.com.

For more information about Stockton’s programs for veterans and students currently serving in the military, visit the Office of Veteran Affairs.

— News release from Richard Stockton College of New Jersey