South Florida State College

Feb. 18, 2021 – South Florida State College (SFSC) has again been designated as a Military Friendly® School by VIQTORY, a service-disabled, veteran-owned business that issues the longest-running, most comprehensive review of college and university services provided to military and veteran students.

Each year, VIQTORY establishes the list of Military Friendly® Schools from the results of public research and the data-driven survey that is submitted by each institution. This year, over 1,200 schools completed the survey and 747 were chosen for the designation.

“Military Friendly® is committed to transparency and providing consistent data-driven standards in our designation process,” said Kayla Lopez, national director of Military Partnerships for Military Friendly®. “This creates a competitive atmosphere that encourages colleges to consistently evolve and invest in their programs. Schools who achieve designation show true commitment and dedication in their efforts. Our standards assist schools by providing a benchmark that promotes positive educational outcomes, resources, and support services that better the educational landscape and provide opportunity for the Military Community.”

SFSC provides veterans with academic advising and counseling for all programs and degrees. Veterans are able to sign up for courses the first day of registration regardless of how many hours they have earned. The Cashier’s Office offers veterans and/or their dependents who use VA benefits a 60-day deferment from the time classes start to pay their tuition and fees. This allows veterans to enroll in courses without the need to pay up front.

“Being prior military and now the director of the Career Development Center, I understand the importance of knowing a veteran or dependent using VA educational benefits will get a quality education,” said Robert Hampton, veteran school certifying official and director of the Career Development Center at SFSC. “By pursuing their education, it helps with their transition from military to civilian. Their benefits were earned through enduring sacrifice, so it is only right for an institution to provide the best educational experience possible. The designation of Military Friendly® does just that.”

As part of the College’s outreach to veterans, SFSC accepts a variety of educational benefits provided by the Department of Veteran Affairs. Those benefits range from the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which provides financial support for education to individuals who have at least 90 days of aggregate service after Sept. 10, 2001, to Veteran Readiness and Employment Program, Chapter 31 for veterans who suffered a service-connected disability that limits their ability to work or prevents them from working.

The SFSC Testing Center is recognized as an “open” military friendly testing center by the United States Department of Defense which regulates most military educational assistance programs. The College-Level Examination Program (CLEP) lets students earn college credit for what they already know by earning qualifying scores on any of 33 introductory-level college subject examinations.

The exams are funded by the United States government through the Defense Activity for Non Traditional Education Support (DANTES). Through this program, eligible DANTES-funded test takers attempting a test title for the first time will not only have their exam fee funded by DANTES, but the SFSC Testing Center will also waive their administrative fee for veterans and active military, with proper ID.

Along with providing educational opportunities, the College also offers interactive tools to assist them with career planning, counseling, and job placement efforts at the Career Development Center.

The College is committed to helping military-affiliated students feel welcome on campus by ensuring they have access to the educational benefits to which they are entitled. To assist with any deployment and training issues, any military student called to active service can interrupt education and return without penalty.

The 2021-2022 Military Friendly® Schools list will be published in the May issue of G.I. Jobs magazine and can be found at militaryfriendly.com.

For more information about SFSC’s veteran services, contact Rob Hampton at 863-784-7128 or email robert.hampton@southflorida.edu.

ABOUT MILITARY FRIENDLY®

The Military Friendly® Schools list is created each year based on extensive research using public data sources for more than 8,800 schools nationwide, input from student veterans, and responses to the proprietary, data-driven Military Friendly® Schools survey from participating institutions. The survey questions, methodology, criteria and weighting were developed with the assistance of an independent research firm and an advisory council of educators and employers. The survey is administered for free and is open to all postsecondary schools that wish to participate. Criteria for consideration can be found at militaryfriendly.com.

March 3, 2020 – South Florida State College (SFSC) has been designated as a Military Friendly® School by VIQTORY, a service-disabled, veteran-owned business that issues the longest-running, most comprehensive review of college and university services provided to military and veteran students.

Each year, VIQTORY establishes the list of Military Friendly® Schools from the results of public research and the data-driven survey that is submitted by each institution. This year, 1,693 schools filled out the survey and each school was ranked according to the data that was collected.

“South Florida State College takes a serious commitment to providing top quality services to our active duty military students as well as our veterans,” said Dr. Timothy Wise, SFSC’s dean of student services. “We are proud to once again be recognized for our commitment to them.”

SFSC provide veterans with academic advising and counseling for all programs and degrees. Veterans are able to sign up for courses the first day of registration regardless of how many hours they have earned. The Cashier’s Office offers veterans and/or their dependents utilizing VA benefits a deferment for tuition fees. The Cashier’s Office grants veterans a 60-day deferment from the time classes start to pay their fees. This allows veterans to enroll into courses without having to pay up front.

“Being prior military myself and knowing that our institution is Military Friendly®, it really makes me proud,” said Robert Hampton, SFSC student services advisor and veteran school certifying official.

As part of the College’s outreach to veterans, SFSC accepts a variety of educational benefits provided by the Department of Veteran Affairs. Those benefits range from the Post-9/11 GI Bill, which provides financial support for education to individuals who have at least 90 days of aggregate service after Sept. 10, 2001, to Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment program Chapter 31 for veterans who suffered a service-connected disability that limits their ability to work or prevents them from working.

Along with providing educational opportunities, the College also offers interactive tools to assist them with career planning, counseling, and job placement efforts at the Career Development Center.

The College is committed to helping the military-affiliated students feel welcome on campus, to make sure they have access to the educational benefits to which they are entitled, and to make sure their college experience is rewarding and productive. To assist with any deployment and training issues, any military student called to active service can interrupt education and return without penalty.

For more information about SFSC’s veteran services, contact Hampton at 863-784-7128 or email robert.hampton@southflorida.edu.