The University of Houston-Victoria recently was named a Military Friendly School thanks to its efforts to recruit and support active military personnel and veterans.

Phil Castille

Victory Media, the publisher of G.I. Jobs magazine and Military Friendly School guides, awards the designation to colleges, universities and technical schools that seek to assist servicemen and women, veterans and spouses as students and to ensure their academic success on campus.

“UHV is committed to helping active military members and veterans use their life experiences to the best educational advantage,” UHV President Phil Castille said. “We try to maximize the number of military credits and training that veterans can transfer to UHV to apply toward their university degree programs.”

Victory Media surveyed more than 10,000 schools. UHV ranked in the top 20 percent of schools nationwide for demonstrating a strong interest in recruiting military students. As a result, UHV is listed in the company’s “2014 Guide to Military Friendly Schools.”

“Inclusion on the 2014 list of Military Friendly Schools shows UHV’s commitment to providing a supportive environment for military students,” Victory Media Vice President Sean Collins said.

Ruby Dean

UHV has active military members taking online degree programs, as well as veterans taking online and face-to-face classes. Ruby Dean, a UHV financial aid specialist who also serves as the university’s Veterans Affairs certification official, said UHV is a good choice because of the individual attention provided by the university from admission through graduation.

“A frequent positive comment I hear from veterans about UHV is that we are able to offer them one-on-one personalized attention,” Dean said. “UHV has small class sizes so that students get to know the professors and feel at ease whether they are taking classes online or on campus.”

Victoria resident Naomi Westerman, a Navy veteran pursuing a Global Master of Business Administration, said the UHV staff does a good job helping veterans receive the benefits entitled to them.

“They are extremely helpful in assisting students exercising their VA benefits,” Westerman said. “I found that the staff is quick to respond to inquiries and make sure payments and reimbursements are processed quickly.”

UHV is approved by the Texas Education Agency for VA educational benefits for veterans, children and spouses. There are several different scholarships available that can cover tuition, fees and books.

For more information about veteran benefits and scholarships, contact Dean at 361-570-4129 or deanr@uhv.edu.