Military Education Liaison at University of Phoenix
Road warrior helps veterans further their education at the University of Phoenix.
by Warren Duffie
For two years, Eric Hager, a military education liaison for the University of Phoenix, has vigorously encouraged military members to enroll in one of the university’s degree programs. Face-to-face meetings, e-mails, phone calls: Although many service members have taken a hodgepodge of college classes over the years and earned many college credits through their military experience, the high work tempo of many military find completing their degree a daunting challenge.
“I tell them that I can relate – I was working and going to school full-time while serving in the Arizona National Guard,” said Hager. “I make it a point to stay in contact [with the military] waiting for the day I receive a call or e-mail that says ‘Thanks to your patience and persistence, I’m finally getting off my butt and going back to school.’ At University of Phoenix, knowing that I helped someone better their life is a gratifying moment.”
On the Job
As a military education liaison in the University of Phoenix’s Veterans Office, Hager, 39, is the institution’s main point of contact for 96 bases along the East Coast. His primary duties include contacting and meeting potential students, education services officers, staff command, and civilian employees.
Hager is on the road nearly three weeks each month. When working onsite at the University of Phoenix, he follows up with prospective students and base education staff, conferring with supervisors about his trips and prepares for his next base installation visit.
When traveling, Hager’s days are marathons of plane flights, meetings, and paperwork. He finishes each day with a hard-core workout in the base gym and homework (he’s working on his Bachelor’s in organizational security and management).
“When I first started this job in 2004, I really had to work on explaining the concept of online classes and distance learning,” said the corporal. “Today, it’s about educating people on how they can effectively balance classes and their busy work and home lives.
“I really like the fact that I can be a mentor,” Hager continued. “I’m an example of someone who has a full-time job, has been deployed by the military, but manages to work on his degree.”
One of the Premier Online Universities
The University of Phoenix is the largest private university in North America – with over 170 campuses, 17,000 instructors, and more than 100 degree programs ranging from business and technology to health care and education.
Because students can complete all of their education online – including registration and book-buying – the University of Phoenix is popular among military personnel. It offers a 20 percent tuition discount to active-duty, Guard, and Reserve service members and their spouses. Other financial incentives include 50 scholarships through AMVETS and five full scholarships for severely-injured veterans through the DoD’s Heroes to Hometowns program.
The University of Phoenix has a full-time Veterans Affairs office and separate military campus – staffed by more than 600 veterans specially trained to accommodate service members and their families.
“The Veterans Affairs office is a great work environment for people just leaving the military,” said Hager. “When you get out, you miss ‘the guys.’ But here you can work in an atmosphere of shared values and experiences. Plus, the benefits are excellent, the work hours are great, and you have access to a variety of resources to further your own education [including an educational tuition program for employees and their dependents].”
In Uniform and the Transition
A native of Chicago, Hager enlisted in the Army in 1987, as an Apache helicopter crewman. But two years later, he fell from a troop transport truck, shattering a leg and ended his active-duty career.
Hager returned home and spent the next 15 years working for various law enforcement agencies and organizations. In 2004, his brother, a manager at the University of Phoenix’s Veterans Affairs office, told him about a job opening processing enrollments.
“It sounded like a great job,” said Hager. “I wanted to finish my own schooling and knew working for a university would be a good move. Also, I missed the camaraderie of the military and wanted to be around other veterans. I spent six months working in enrollments before being promoted to my current job.”
Once he moved to Arizona, Hager strengthened his military ties by re-joining the military in the National Guard; he spent 2007 deployed as a combat medic in Afghanistan.
“My leg was completely healed and I had kept myself in good physical shape,” he said. “I also joined because we are a nation at war and wanted my kids to know their dad had served his country when it needed him.
“The University of Phoenix was great about my deployment,” Hager continued. “My job was waiting for me when I came back. The university also made up the difference between my civilian and military salary.”