Opinion | How to Stop Schools That Prey on Veterans

I think a lot of this could be resolved if the VA reps at these schools were actually trained by the VA. My daughter used my GI Bill at a private school. The "VA" rep was a total moron. If I hadn't gotten involved, gawd only knows what they could have screwed up. She graduated with her BFA and minimal debt. But even if they think they're helping, and some of them try, they don't know what they're doing which opens the door for institutional stupidity on top of some of these schools intentionally defrauding the system.

I don't think it's possible to stop for-profit schools from exploiting loopholes or students, but revisions to the 90/10 rule and changing the policy governing federal aid is a good start. In the end its a successful business tactic (even if its morally questionable) and it will continue as long it works. Plus, there are several other factors going on here: like the pressure (or need) of a college degree , or perception of convenience, success, and accomplishment. There are many other factors I could list, but the bottom line is you can only do so much and it rests on the vet or sm to do their own research. Which is hard when there are so many schools to choose from, and each has its own pros and cons. I know some industries have a blacklist that warns consumers of shady companies that sell inferior products. However, information regarding educational institutions are scattered, inconsistent, and often based on opinion rather than fact. Like any thing else in life, whether it's a car loan, a home loan, or whatever, you're always going to find predatory practices. A counselor once told me "you can't make a condom 100 percent effective, you have to take some personal responsibility for your actions."