Veteran Enrollment in the Ivy League

As our loyal readers know, Ivy Coach strongly supports increased veteran enrollment at Ivy League schools. In fact, Ivy Coach’s pro bono services are reserved exclusively for veterans of America’s military — to help them earn admission to their dream schools after dutiful service in our nation’s uniform. And so when we came across a recent editorial penned by Michael Kotlikoff, provost of Cornell University, lamenting the fact that too few veterans are enrolled at our nation’s elite undergraduate institutions, we found ourselves rooting him on.

Elite Colleges Can Do More, Must Do More for Veterans

As Mr. Kotlikoff writes in his piece entitled “Far too few veterans are enrolled in our elite undergraduate institutions” for The Hechinger Report, “As the nation’s elite colleges rightly focus on the diversity of their student bodies — thoughtfully balancing socioeconomic, racial and ethnic, gender, sexual orientation and geographic factors to achieve an inclusive learning environment that mirrors our broader society — a group of highly valuable, highly deserving students remains poorly considered. Fewer than two out of every 1,000 undergraduate students enrolled in the Ivy League and peer institutions identify as having served in the U.S. military. There are likely more undergraduates in our most selective universities who have lived in Paris than on Parris Island. The near-absence of undergraduate veterans at our most selective institutions is a great loss — both for the veterans who are excluded from this valuable learning environment, and for our other students, who would benefit from exposure to individuals with markedly different experiences.”

We couldn’t agree more with the words of Mr. Kotlikoff, the parent of a daughter currently serving in the United States Navy. We particularly enjoyed his line in which he distinguishes students who live in Paris from those who live on Parris Island, the training site of our United States Marines. Good one! But we need more than words. We need action. We need more schools to earmark more slots for America’s veterans. Just as recruited athletes have slots, so too should veterans at each of our nation’s highly selective colleges. Such a move would greatly benefit veterans, and it would also greatly benefit students who have never served our nation in uniform but are made better by learning at their side.