VA Benefits: Outcome Measures and More Outreach Would Enhance the Post-9/11 On-the-Job Training and Apprenticeship Programs

What GAO Found

In 2011, Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits—initially available only for higher education—were expanded to cover on-the-job training (OJT) and apprenticeship programs. Veterans surveyed and interviewed by GAO for its November 2015 report said the Post-9/11 OJT and apprenticeship programs helped them transition to civilian life. In addition, employers and apprenticeship sponsors who responded to GAO’s surveys cited a number of benefits for participating, including recruitment and retention. Of the approximately 1.2 million veterans who used their Post-9/11 GI Bill benefits since October 2011, about 27,000—or about 2 percent—participated in OJT or apprenticeship programs, according to VA program data.

GAO also found that the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) primarily provides information about the OJT and apprenticeship programs through mandatory briefings for transitioning servicemembers and on its website. While VA’s outreach efforts include some information on these programs, VA’s mandatory briefings and web resources generally emphasize higher education and lack sufficient detail for veterans to reasonably understand how to use their GI Bill benefits for OJT and apprenticeships. State officials GAO surveyed reported conducting outreach in a variety of ways, such as attending job fairs and speaking to veterans’ groups. However, without more detailed information on these programs, veterans may not be able to fully understand these benefits.

Key challenges faced by veterans and employers in using these programs include lack of awareness and administrative burdens, according to state officials, veterans, and employers GAO surveyed. Most state officials surveyed reported that veterans’ lack of awareness about the programs is a primary challenge they face in facilitating veteran (39 of 44) and employer (39 of 43) participation. Further, over half of state officials surveyed (24 of 42) cited challenges related to VA’s current paper-based processing system, which requires employers to fax or mail monthly forms to VA in order for a veteran to receive benefits. In addition, 11 of 15 employers and apprenticeship sponsors GAO interviewed said the process is burdensome or inefficient, and 6 of 28 veterans GAO interviewed said their benefits have sometimes been delayed. VA is developing a new data system, but it may not be implemented until 2017 at the earliest, according to VA officials, and administrative challenges in the interim could hinder program participation.

In addition, little is known about the performance of VA’s Post-9/11 GI Bill OJT and apprenticeship programs because VA does not measure program outcomes, such as whether participants retain employment after completing the program. Absent such information, GAO examined Department of Labor (DOL) outcome data for its related OJT and apprenticeship programs, which indicate the potential for positive outcomes for these training models.  Federal standards for internal control call for establishing and reviewing performance measures to allow an agency to evaluate relevant data and take appropriate actions. Without such measures, VA is limited in its ability to assess its programs.