What is a Military Spouse Friendly Employer®?

Hiring is important, but for military spouses the real challenge is sustaining a career within a given profession during constant geographic relocations. The key question the index attempts to address is the career of the military spouse. The Military Friendly® methodology considers the policies, processes, resources and investments that have the greatest impact on career opportunity and advancement for military spouses. It identifies the employers that demonstrably provide the greatest career potential. The Military Spouse Friendly Employers® survey takes a detailed look at the lifecycle of military spouse employees: What employers do to attract, hire, and develop them; as well as the policies and practices with which employers support them along the way. The survey offers an opportunity to highlight the efforts of companies across the country to help military spouse employees have long-term careers.

What is a Military Spouse Friendly School®?

Since 2009, the Military Spouse Friendly® Schools list has been a reliable resource for military spouses and has set a standard for higher education institutions to provide the best post-secondary education experiences for spouses of service members.

“The Military Spouse Friendly Schools designation helps military spouses select schools that will support them in their education journey by meeting their unique needs as a part of a military family,” said Brian Hucik, National Program Manager, Military Friendly. “Schools that are selected for the list are at the forefront of supporting the goals of military spouses.”

This prestigious list is created using data sources from federal agencies and proprietary survey information from participating organizations to create a comprehensive guide for military spouses looking to further their education. This year 196 schools earned this prestigious designation.

Methodology

• Total MFS Rating: We begin with a school’s overall Military Friendly® rating.
• Academic Credibility: A measure of the school’s level of accreditation, graduation rate, completion rate, student-to-faculty ratio and entrance requirements.
• Academic Support: The availability of academic support and advisement programs, both formal and informal, to ensure student academic success, both online and on campus.
• Career Planning Resources: The availability of career planning services and resources, along with the school’s employment placement or advanced degree matriculation rate.
• Flexibility: The availability of online, evening, and weekend programs, as well as the presence of additional supportive policies for spouses such as out-of-state fee waivers, and on-campus living waivers.
• Military Family Supports: The availability of programs specifically designed to support military families in and out of deployment, along with the availability of programs for military dependents, and additional discounts, scholarships or other set-asides.
• Campus Supports: On-campus and online military spouse clubs, social programs and other dedicated counseling or professional services.
• Federal Approvals: MyCAA program approval was a requirement. Other federal approvals measured include DoD Tuition Assistance MOU, VA Principles of Excellence, GI Bill approval, etc.
• Current military spouse and military dependent population percentages.
• Correlation of MyCAA-approved programs and other available training programs to portable career opportunities.