Examining the Post-9/11 GI Bill’s Progress and Promise

The Post-9/11 GI Bill is one of the nation’s largest federal education investments: more than $100 billion has gone to help veterans and their families earn college degrees and job training. But despite the bill’s size and importance, many veterans still struggle to use the benefit. And, until recently, there was no clear national picture of how well the program was working.

One reason? The data needed to answer basic questions—Who’s using the benefit? Are they earning credentials? Are they getting good jobs?—was scattered across different federal agencies. That made it hard to see what was working and what could be improved.

AIR collaborated with other organizations and federal agencies to answer a simple question: Is the latest GI Bill living up to its promise? 
 

In partnership with Veterans Education Success, a team of researchers from AIR, the Census Bureau, and the Department of Veterans Affairs conducted the first major study of how the GI Bill is working across all military branches.

This study brought together data from across six federal agencies to track benefit use, education outcomes, and job earnings. Here’s what we found:

• Who Used the Benefit - Just over half of eligible veterans (54%) personally used their benefits. Of those, 47% finished a degree within six years—more than twice the rate of financially independent students nationwide. 
   
• Earnings After School - 78% of veterans who utilized the GI Bill were employed within two years of completing their education, compared to 64% of non-veterans. Veterans with associate degrees earned about $44,100 a year; those with bachelor’s degrees earned about $55,700. Engineering majors earned the most. 
   
• Barriers to Access - Nearly 4 in 10 veterans didn’t use or transfer their benefits, often because of confusing information or financial challenges, especially for those with families. 
   
• Value for Taxpayers - Veterans who attended public colleges and universities earned more than those at for-profits, even though the GI Bill paid more to the for-profits.

But the numbers didn’t tell the whole story. So, we listened to veterans directly. In interviews, we heard again and again how confusing rules, unclear deadlines, and a lack of reliable guidance kept veterans and their families from using the benefits they had earned.

The most common issue? Not knowing how or when to transfer benefits to a spouse or child. “I didn’t know that I had to be on active duty to transfer the benefit. I found out too late,” one veteran shared. “It would’ve helped my kids.”

Others spoke about cost concerns, confusion over which benefit to use, and how hard it was to get a clear answer when it mattered most. 
 

This research shows that while the GI Bill is helping many veterans earn degrees and find good jobs, too many still miss out. Now, this work gives veterans, lawmakers, and education leaders the clearest picture yet of how the GI Bill is being used—and where it needs to improve.

• Veterans and their families can make smarter choices about schools and training programs.
   
• Policymakers can see what’s working and fix what isn’t.
   
• Government agencies now have a model for using shared data to improve programs that matter.

These findings are already shaping bipartisan efforts to expand access, improve transparency, and make sure this hard-earned benefit delivers on its full promise—for veterans, their families, and the country. 

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This research was supported by Arnold Ventures, Gates Foundation, and the Joyce Foundation in partnership with Veterans Education Success.