The new post-9/11 GI bill aims to help more student veterans finance their education, but there is a growing concern over state budget woes and university policies that could make the transition to college difficult.  The American Council on Education issued a new report stating that some student veterans are facing obstacles enrolling in college.

The current economic climate has put a strain on state budgets with many of those cuts coming from higher education and aid programs. Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn recently cut the Illinois Veteran Grant from the state budget, a grant that provided four years of funding to any public university in the state at no cost and offered benefits better than the federal GI bill.

State universities are stepping up and covering the costs to fund veterans' education. However, they will not be reimbursed by the state, and in a time when most universities are facing large deficits and cuts of their own. Veterans are also having trouble receiving federal aid since the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs is delayed in processing applications for aid.

Student veterans are also facing difficulties in turning their military experience into college credit, causing students to stretch out their GI benefits and delay entering the workforce. A survey conducted by the American Council on Education estimates that one in five universities do not award course credit for military service or training. But the nearly half a million student veterans enrolling at colleges across the country this year may cause universities to reexamine their policies.

Washington-based Servicemembers Opportunities Colleges is a group of more than 1,800 schools whose members recognize coursework and training in the military. Participants include the California State University system, George Washington University, the State University of New York schools and Ohio State. The advocacy group blames universities' lack of military knowledge, arguing that the institutions underestimate the quality of military training and classes.

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