by our College Data Analytics Team
If you’re a veteran, service member, or military-affiliated student looking to study education, general. at the Master’s Degree level, you’ve come to the right place. This ranking highlights 131 colleges that stand out for veteran education, general. students, using our 2026 methodology.
Our ranking weighs the factors that matter most to veteran and military-affiliated students: affordability and veteran financial benefits (including GI Bill and Yellow Ribbon support), academic quality, on-campus veteran resources and support services, veteran-friendly policies, and the size of the veteran student community. To help you decide, College Factual reviewed colleges nationwide, drawing primarily on U.S. Department of Education data (IPEDS and College Scorecard).
Ready to build your own comparison? Try our College Combat tool to weigh the factors that matter most to you.
Explore the best education, general. colleges for veterans at a specific degree level:
Here are the top-ranked education, general. colleges for veterans:
No school served veteran education, general. students better than University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill this year. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill scores 90.4 out of 100 for veteran support overall. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. See the full education, general. report for University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Ohio State University-Main Campus is a great choice for veterans pursuing education, general., landing the #2 spot this year. It scores 89.9 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 100.0. More about the education, general. program at Ohio State University-Main Campus
University of Michigan-Ann Arbor came in at #3 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. University of Michigan-Ann Arbor scores 89.6 out of 100 for veteran support overall. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, and veteran resources 100.0. Read more about education, general. at University of Michigan-Ann Arbor
A rank of #4 makes San Diego State University one of the top education, general. colleges for veteran students. The school's overall veterans score is 87.8 out of 100. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 100.0. Read more about education, general. at San Diego State University
Veteran students seeking a strong education, general. program will find one at Winona State University, which ranked #5. It scores 86.3 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. More about the education, general. program at Winona State University
University of Central Florida ranked #6 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. The school's overall veterans score is 84.7 out of 100. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. Read more about education, general. at University of Central Florida
Southern New Hampshire University ranked #7 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. It scores 83.3 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. Read more about education, general. at Southern New Hampshire University
National University placed #8 among the best education, general. colleges for veterans. National University scores 82.8 out of 100 for veteran support overall. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. See the full education, general. report for National University
University of Michigan-Dearborn landed the #9 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. The school's overall veterans score is 82.5 out of 100. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. More about the education, general. program at University of Michigan-Dearborn
Southern Connecticut State University ranked #10 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. Southern Connecticut State University scores 82.1 out of 100 for veteran support overall. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. Read more about education, general. at Southern Connecticut State University
Clemson University came in at #11 for veteran education, general. students this year. It scores 81.8 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. Read more about education, general. at Clemson University
University of Nevada-Reno came in at #12 for veteran education, general. students this year. The school's overall veterans score is 81.7 out of 100. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. More about the education, general. program at University of Nevada-Reno
University of South Carolina-Columbia landed the #13 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. It scores 81.6 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. Read more about education, general. at University of South Carolina-Columbia
Grand Valley State University landed the #14 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. The school's overall veterans score is 81.5 out of 100. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. See the full education, general. report for Grand Valley State University
Virginia Commonwealth University ranked #15 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. It scores 81.3 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. Read more about education, general. at Virginia Commonwealth University
University of Iowa landed the #16 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. It scores 81.1 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. More about the education, general. program at University of Iowa
Towson University came in at #17 for veteran education, general. students this year. The school's overall veterans score is 80.9 out of 100. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. Read more about education, general. at Towson University
California State University-Sacramento ranked #18 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. California State University-Sacramento scores 80.7 out of 100 for veteran support overall. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. Read more about education, general. at California State University-Sacramento
Oregon State University placed #19 among the best education, general. colleges for veterans. It scores 80.5 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. See the full education, general. report for Oregon State University
Augusta University came in at #20 for veteran education, general. students this year. It scores 80.5 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. Read more about education, general. at Augusta University
Millersville University of Pennsylvania landed the #21 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. It scores 80.4 out of 100 for serving veteran and military students. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, alongside a 66.7 veteran-support score. More about the education, general. program at Millersville University of Pennsylvania
California State University-Fullerton landed the #22 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. The school's overall veterans score is 80.3 out of 100. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. Read more about education, general. at California State University-Fullerton
Sonoma State University landed the #23 spot for veterans pursuing education, general.. The school's overall veterans score is 80.3 out of 100. On veteran affordability it scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. See the full education, general. report for Sonoma State University
University of Wisconsin-Platteville came in at #24 for veteran education, general. students this year. The school's overall veterans score is 80.2 out of 100. Its affordability for veterans scores 100.0, and veteran resources 66.7. Read more about education, general. at University of Wisconsin-Platteville
Purdue University-Main Campus ranked #25 on our 2026 list of the best education, general. colleges for veterans. Purdue University-Main Campus scores 80.1 out of 100 for veteran support overall. Veteran affordability (GI Bill benefits, tuition support) scores 100.0, with a veteran-resources score of 66.7. More about the education, general. program at Purdue University-Main Campus
These education, general. colleges also placed near the top this year:
*These averages are for the top 25 ranked colleges only.
This ranking is based on the factors that matter most to veteran and military-affiliated students studying education, general.: affordability and veteran financial benefits (GI Bill, Yellow Ribbon), academic quality, on-campus veteran resources and support services, veteran-friendly policies, and the size of the veteran student community.
These rankings are produced by College Factual, 2026 edition.
References
More about our data sources and methodologies.
