10 Best Online Degrees for Vets

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Best Online Degrees for Vets

In addition to adjusting to their daily lives again, one of the biggest struggles for military members returning from deployment, thousands of vets also have a hard time finding and keeping a job. Whether they’re in the wrong field or they have a physical or emotional disability preventing them from finding steady work, it’s a dark spot for many vets.

Vets Back Home, Without Jobs

Unemployment among veterans is nearly a full percentage point higher than for civilians.

5.1%

Unemployment rate for Afghanistan/Iraq-era veterans

Unemployed veterans by age group

45+: 60%

25-44: 36%

18-24: 4%

Veteran unemployment rate by state (2016)

Alabama: 4.9%

Alaska: 2.7%

Arizona: 3.9%

Arkansas: 3.1%

California: 5.4%

Colorado: 3.9%

Connecticut: 4.4%

Delaware: 4.1%

District of Columbia: 7.6%

Florida: 4.2%

Georgia: 3.5%

Hawaii: 2.2%

Idaho: 3.6%

Illinois: 6.7%

Indiana: 1.8%

Iowa: 4.2%

Kansas: 5.2%

Kentucky: 3.9%

Louisiana: 5%

Maine: 3.1%

Maryland: 3.8%

Massachusetts: 4.6%

Michigan: 3.2%

Minnesota: 5.8%

Mississippi: 4.6%

Missouri: 3.2%

Montana: 4.4%

Nebraska: 4.1%

Nevada: 4%

New Hampshire: 2.1%

New Jersey: 4.9%

New Mexico: 3.6%

New York: 5.6%

North Carolina: 4.5%

North Dakota: 3.9%

Ohio: 4.2%

Oklahoma: 4.5%

Oregon: 6.3%

Pennsylvania: 5.2%

Rhode Island: 3.7%

South Carolina: 5%

South Dakota: 2.6%

Tennessee: 3.6%

Texas: 3.6%

Utah: 2.3%

Vermont: 2.2%

Virginia: 3.4%

Washington: 3.8%

West Virginia: 4.8%

Wisconsin: 5%

Wyoming: 5.1%

36%

Afghanistan/Iraq-era veterans with a service-connected disability

Best Online Degrees for Vets

Once their service is up, veterans can bring innumerable talents and skills learned during deployment to a variety of areas.

Mechanical engineering

What they might have done in the military: Maintain vehicles and aircraft; establish means of power generation; plan, build and analyze structures

Median salary: $84,190

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +5%

Information technology

What they might have done in the military: Install and maintain computer and communication systems; ensure security of computer networks; analyze overhead and satellite imagery

Median salary: $79,700

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +8%

Nursing

What they might have done in the military: Treat routine infections and illnesses; administer medications; treat wounds in forward-deployed areas

Median salary: $64,540

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +16%

Criminal justice

What they might have done in the military: Serve as military police or investigator; help secure areas around military installations; work with local communities in foreign countries

Median salary: $61,600

Entry-level education required: High school or equivalent

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +4%

Business administration

What they might have done in the military: Monitor recruitment levels for particular tasks; manage personnel issues for military installations; ensure equipment, materials and systems are available for missions

Median salary: $90,050

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +8%

Education

What they might have done in the military: Lead general knowledge or subject-based instruction of recruits or officers; administer ROTC programs at high schools or colleges; help establish foreign schools

Median salary: $58,030

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +6%

Psychology

What they might have done in the military: Treat mental and emotional disorders of service members; conduct research on effects of service; perform regular mental evaluations of service members

Median salary: $75,230

Entry-level education required: Doctorate

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +19%

Accounting/finance

What they might have done in the military: Set policies for and monitor spending of military funds; prepare budgets and financial forecasts; prepare and examine financial records and reports

Median salary: $68,150

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +11%

International relations

What they might have done in the military: Provide regional knowledge and foreign language understanding; meet with foreign military and government officials; collect and analyze information about military operations of foreign countries

Median salary: $114,290

Entry-level education required: Master’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: -2%

Social work

What they might have done in the military: Counsel service members and family members of those about to deploy; advocate for currently serving and retired military; coordinate resources for service members facing crisis

Median salary: $46,890

Entry-level education required: Bachelor’s degree

Expected change in job availability, 2014-24: +12%

Degrees for Vets

SOURCE

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics