A new working paper by the National Bureau of Economic Research found that beneficiaries of the Post-9/11 GI Bill earned lower wages for seven to nine years after they left the Army compared with their non-college-going peers, reports Inside Higher Ed.
The GI Bill lowered earnings by $1,400 on average per veteran across that seven- to nine-year period, Inside Higher Ed reported. Veterans are unlikely to recoup those lost earnings during their career, according to the study.
In previous versions of the GI Bill, eligible veterans saw two to three years of lower earnings before quickly outpacing their non-college-going peers, Inside Higher Ed reported.
The paper’s authors speculated reasons for the difference in earnings between post-9/11 GI Bill eligible veterans and their counterparts. They said some veterans who were not previously interested in college might have been induced into going because of the expanded benefits. These eligible veterans, the paper stated, may not have a lot of guidance and support and could be choosing institutions that do not have positive returns, such as some for-profits, reported Inside Higher Ed.
Although the paper looked at the negative impacts of Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits on some veteran's earnings, many succeed because of the subsidies, said Andrew Barr, lead author of the paper.
"There almost certainly are many veterans who are going to college and using these benefits and benefiting tremendously," he added.
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Inside Higher Ed
https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2021/07/20/post-911-gi-bill-leads-lower-earnings-paper-shows