The Military Friendly ratings program recently named The University of New Mexico a 2021-2022 Military Friendly Gold University. The designation positions UNM as a desired destination for military-affiliated students within New Mexico and throughout the country.

VIQTORY, an organization that connects the military community to civilian employment and educational opportunities, released its most recent Military Friendly®​ ​Schools list. Institutions must complete a rigorous, comprehensive survey that measures the program or organization’s commitment, effort and success in creating sustainable and meaningful benefits for the military community.

“This designation means that UNM is within 10 percent of the 10th ranked Military Friendly University in the United States—in other words we are very close to being one of the top 10 Military Friendly schools,” said Alonzo Maestas, UNM Veteran & Military Resource Center (VMRC) director. 

Maestas said the VMRC provides high quality and comprehensive support to student veterans, ultimately creating an atmosphere of commitment, respect and academic excellence.

“We provide education, administrative services and job advisement to our student veterans, their families and active duty students, as well as outreach to military communities at large,” Maestas says. 

Last year, the VMRC served more than 1,200 military-affiliated students, but Maestas said he feels they can do more.

“With more than 140,000 veterans in New Mexico, there are many more in the county and state that we would love to see walk through our doors,” he said.

The Military Friendly ratings program was founded in 2003 with the mission of encouraging civilian organizations to invest in programs to recruit, retain and advance veterans as employees, entrepreneurs and students. The overall goal is to create civilian opportunities for veterans by creating a demand for them in the private sector—ultimately improving their lives.

“The VMRC thanks the entire UNM community for its help and support in ensuring that military-affiliated students succeed,” Maestas said.