In 2013, The Huffington Post reported that over 1 million former servicemembers and their dependents had enrolled in college after service. For many of those veterans, the GI Bill and other service-based scholarship made it possible for them to pursue higher education. Such was the case with Daniel Ybarra.
While serving in Iraq as a Navy medical corpsman, Ybarra helped his fellow servicemembers and locals with their injuries and illnesses. When he returned to the U.S., Ybarra decided to return to school to pursue a medical degree.
"To be honest, the thought of becoming a doctor had never crossed my mind before," Ybarra told the UCLA Newsroom. "Anything that required school was just a no-go for me. But I had some awesome mentors and came off of active duty thinking, 'I'm going to enroll in community college and keep pushing until something disqualifies me.'"
Ybarra found help in his pursuits from the Tillman Foundation, an organization that was founded by former NFL player Pat Tillman to provide veterans with scholarships and other support.
Thanks to the scholarship from the organization and academic support, Ybarra, who was one of five to receive the financial award, will graduate with an M.D. and a master of public health degree in 2016, according to the news source.