Veteran Applicants
Military Veteran Applicants
As a member of the military, you have a world of experience beyond the classroom and a life story, outlook, and voice all your own. As an institute of higher learning and a leading liberal arts university, Wesleyan is committed to amplifying and supporting diverse perspectives and different viewpoints. Our military veterans are a valued part of the Wesleyan community, helping to enrich and fully engage in the ambitious yet practical principles of civil debate and collaborative problem-solving that move us forward, both individually and collectively.
By stepping into our rigorous liberal arts program, you’ll have opportunities to cross academic boundaries, discover new interests, and take new, calculated risks. You will be coaxed out of your comfort zone and urged to rethink long-held assumptions. You will hone communication and critical-thinking skills that you’ll use wherever the future takes you. On a small, thriving campus that values different points of view, you’ll make an impact on how your peers see the world. And along every step of your journey, you will find an inclusive, tight-knit community, ready to offer resources and support.
“Wesleyan is not necessarily a place for someone who’s just looking to get a degree. This is a place for people to challenge themselves academically—even if you don't know exactly what you want to learn yet. Being passionate about learning is the most important thing.”
—Kay Perkins ’24, US Air Force
“What makes Wesleyan different is that here I can fully be a student. I’m studying Latin American social and political movements in the 20th century. I joined the rugby team. I was a model for an art class. I’ve joined different student groups and met people who are excited, energetic, and motivated to learn. I’m always going to be a veteran, but here I don’t need to be a veteran first.”
—Diego Olivieri ’24, US Marine Corps
Learn more about certification for veterans.
Wesleyan is a proud partner of Service to School (S2S), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit offering free counseling and professional mentorship to US military veterans interested in applying to college and graduate school.
Applying
Wesleyan invites applications from US Military Veterans via any of three methods according to your preference: Wesleyan's own internal Application for Admission for US Military Veterans, the Common Application, and the Apply Coalition Powered by Scoir. For more information on application requirements, please see Frequently Asked Questions below.
Wesleyan University’s Application for Admission for US Military Veterans is available online from August 1 until May 1 each year. Admission decisions will be made on a rolling basis as schedules allow, with notification to candidates made within two weeks of submission and completion including receipt of all requisite materials. All students new to Wesleyan must begin in the Fall semester and must plan to be on campus for new student orientation at the end of August in advance of the first day of classes, generally the first Monday in September.
As has been Wesleyan's practice for new veteran students, those who apply via our Application for Admission for US Military Veterans may choose to declare their intent to forego prior college course credit to begin as first-year students at Wesleyan.
Required Application Materials
- Wesleyan Application for Admission for US Military Veterans, Common Application or Coalition by Scoir Application
- High school transcript
- College transcripts (if applicable)
- College report (if currently enrolled)
- SAT or ACT Scores (optional)
- Two letters of recommendation, preferably one recommendation from an academic instructor who taught you in a recent college course and one recommendation from an employer and/or military personnel
- FAFSA (for all seeking financial aid)
- Either your DD 214 (for veterans post separation) or your Leave & Earning Statement (for active duty servicemembers prior to separation), intended to verify veteran status and character of discharge.
Financial Aid
Our goal is to ensure that a Wesleyan education is affordable and well within veterans’ reach. Aid packages for veteran students meet 100% of their demonstrated financial need without loans and with a minimum expected student contribution of $1,200 each year. Should a student use and exhaust their VA benefits, Wesleyan will continue to meet 100% of their demonstrated financial need through graduation.
Please know that Wesleyan is committed to addressing the specific needs and circumstances of our veteran students on a case-by-case basis, which may include adjustments to financial aid awards based on documented family and/or dependent care expenses. Please do not hesitate to contact Matt Akre, Wesleyan’s Office of Financial Aid Veterans Liaison with any questions related to financial aid and the application of veterans benefits at Wesleyan.
Beginning with new students entering Wesleyan in Fall semester of 2024, US military veterans who have earned education support from the federal government (including Post 9/11-GI Bill® benefits, Chapter 31 benefits, Yellow Ribbon scholarship) may elect not to use these benefits toward their Wesleyan education. However, there are considerations to be made of which applicants should be aware: veterans not using the GI Bill® are not eligible to receive the Monthly Housing Allowance. This benefit can provide a substantial amount of money in pocket to students each month, and thus the decision should be made carefully. You are strongly encouraged to proactively reach out to the Office of Financial Aid Veterans Liaison, Matt Akre, who is the appointed contact for financial aid for both incoming and current student veterans, to discuss your circumstances and what would be best for you.
Veteran Campus Visit Travel Assistance
The Office of Admission is committed to assisting prospective military veteran students to best understand how Wesleyan may serve their educational needs and the resources offered in support of that goal. To that end, we offer travel assistance grants for travel to campus from within the United States which will provide for air travel, ground shuttle, one-night campus-adjacent hotel accommodations, and on-campus food services, in advance of your application to Wesleyan. For military veterans offered admission who have not visited campus via our travel assistance program, we offer the same travel support as you seek to make your final enrollment decision. For questions and instructions on how to receive a travel grant, email Noble Jones in the Office of Admission.
Veteran Contacts
We encourage military veterans to contact the Office of Admission Veterans Resource Team with additional questions that may arise. Noble Jones, Ph.D., is our Associate Dean of Admission who works closely with prospective student-veterans and serves as faculty advisor to the Wesleyan Veterans Organization. Members of the Wesleyan Veterans Organization are also eager to chat with you regarding their experiences transitioning to campus life and in the classrooms at Wesleyan.
In the News
A Path Less Taken
When Terrion Thirsty ’25 joined the United States Marine Corps, it was supposed to be the start of the long military career he’d envisioned since middle school. But four years on, his once-certain view of the future became decidedly less clear.
Warrior-Scholar Program Changes Views on Education
Navy veteran Orion Cox ’28 once viewed higher education as a box to check before beginning his post-military career. After completing two Warrior-Scholar Project educational boot camps, however, his perspective changed.
Student Veteran Named Truman Scholar
Student-veteran Desaree Edwards ’25 was one of 60 student leaders selected as a Truman Scholar. Truman Scholars demonstrate outstanding leadership potential, a commitment to a career in government or the nonprofit sector, and academic excellence.
Warrior-Scholar Project
Wesleyan is honored to support and assist US Military Veterans in their pursuit of post-secondary education as a partner with Warrior-Scholar Project. In June 2023 we hosted our first WSP STEM academic boot camp and look forward to meeting and serving future WSP cohorts on our campus.Frequently Asked Questions
- What extracurricular activities should I pursue to make myself stand out? What if I have limited time to get involved in traditional activities between school and other responsibilities?
If you’re not already engaged with things that bring you joy and/or help those around you, find something of interest to you and carve out a bit of time to engage. Of course, we recognize that work and home responsibilities might prevent you from participating in such activities, and that’s fine. But remember to share these obligations with us as well. They represent devotion, trust, and responsibility, among other qualities, and illustrate your participation in school, at home, at work, and other environments. Don’t discredit the things that keep you busy on a day-to-day basis.
If you haven’t yet had the chance to pursue specific activities but are genuinely interested in something offered at Wesleyan, or perhaps in establishing a new club or organization, be certain to share that with us in your application. We’re excited to understand how new members of the Wesleyan student body envision enhancing and contributing to our community. - What courses of study are available?
For information on majors and minors as well as specific course offerings, visit WesMaps. (If you are entering Wesleyan as a transfer student, not all majors will be available.) The University also offers double majors/double minors as well as linked majors and certificate programs.
- Housing Information for Veterans
Wesleyan offers a variety of housing options, including traditional residence halls, thirty different program houses, and variously sized apartments and wood frame houses. Realizing veterans may prefer more independent housing than is offered to traditional-aged incoming students, veterans are offered all these options, including apartments or wood frame houses, as space permits. Veterans also have the option of requesting an exception to the university requirement that all undergraduates live on campus.
Housing for veteran students is available year-round, as they typically have relocated to Middletown for their studies and do not have another residence to return to during breaks. The residential comprehensive fee includes meals, room, and utilities, and is the same regardless of class year or location. All units are furnished.
A small number of family housing units are available for veterans whose partner and/or children will be living with them on campus. These units are not furnished, and rent is paid monthly to the university, rather than being charged the residential comprehensive fee. Rent typically increases July 1 of each year. Purchasing a meal plan is optional.
If you have, or think you may have, a disability for which you would like to request a housing accommodation, please contact Accessibility Services. This includes requesting an emotional support animal or notification of a service dog; please review Wesleyan’s Pet Policy for more information. You can contact the office by submitting a Disability Notification Accommodation Request Form via WesPortal (Offices and Services > Accessibility Services) or by emailing accessibility@wesleyan.edu.
- What on-campus resources are available to veterans?
The following resources, which are available to all Wesleyan students, may be of particular interest to military veterans:
- I’d like to know more about financial aid programs for veterans.
Yellow Ribbon Scholarships for Dependents: Veterans can transfer their Post-9/11 GI Bill® benefits to their dependent children through a process called “Transfer of Entitlement.” If the transferred benefits show the 100% benefit level on the dependent’s Certificate of Eligibility, the student is eligible to receive Yellow Ribbon scholarship, which covers the full cost of their tuition and fees. If the dependent has less than 100% eligibility, they are not eligible for Yellow Ribbon.
VA Book Allowance: Any student using Post-9/11 GI Bill® (Chapter 33) benefits or Vocational Readiness & Employment (Chapter 31) benefits is eligible for funding to specifically help cover the cost of books and supplies. These amounts vary depending on a student’s benefit chapter (31/33) and their eligibility percentage (under Chapter 33).
Monthly Payment Plan Enrollment Waiver: Because veteran students have different needs than the rest of our traditional student population, the Student Accounts office waives the $45/semester enrollment fee for the Monthly Payment Plan (MPP). As most veteran students will have a balance on their Student Accounts as they wait for their BAH payments to come in, the MPP helps manage any balance on their Student Account month-to-month.
Basic Allowance for Housing (BAH): Wesleyan caps the amount of BAH funds in veteran students’ financial aid packages. Instead of assessing the full amount of BAH that veteran students receive from the VA, we only consider 60% of the student’s RCF fee—factored as the BAH in their aid package—as part of their award. Depending on the student’s calculated family contribution, this approach can make room for additional scholarship funding from Wesleyan and other sources.
Pell Grants/Direct Loans: Federal Title IV Aid—including Pell Grants and Direct Loans—are also available to students who qualify. Pell Grants are based on the student’s federal expected family contribution and are treated as incremental grants in our awarding process if the student is using VA benefits. While most veteran students don’t utilize Direct Loans, they are available to US citizens and eligible noncitizens.