Designing a Mobile App to Support Academic Success for Student Veterans

NCT05344092 | Completed Results

• 2 other identifiers: D3897-PRX-21-003
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 13
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Compared to civilian students in higher education, student Veterans have high rates of mental health disorders (e.g., Depression: 24% vs 12.1%). As a result, Veterans with mental health disorders can be more likely to experience academic issues, such as lower enrollment rates and slower degree attainment on average. Though many student Veterans could benefit from programming embedded in supported education interventions, current in-person VA supported education treatments are often difficult to access - or not available locally - for these Veterans. In addition, there is no widely available, VA-specific online or mobile-app based resource for students. The goal of this project is to develop and evaluate a comprehensive mobile app for student Veterans with mental health disorders. VetEd will provide a resource to (1) orient student Veterans with mental health disorders to successfully transition to the role of student as defined by their self-created educational roadmap, which will include helping students acquire (2) academic skills, (3) mental health management skills, and (4) up-to-date information on psychiatric, academic, and financial resources to help them successfully meet higher-education expectations. This overall study involves three aims: 1) Developing a Veteran-centered educational support app to help student Veterans with mental health disorders to identify their perceived academic needs, app preferences, and evaluate Veteran-centered content; 2) Testing and iteratively revising the VetEd app (n =15) by assessing app software, content, human-computer interface, usability, satisfaction data, and preliminary exploration of changes in educational functioning (course activity completion, academic self-efficacy, and retention; and 3) Completing final revisions of the VetEd app for a future grant application of a larger randomized controlled trial. This pilot project is significant and innovative in three key respects: (1) it extends services based in previous, effective supported education research to address both psychiatric and academic concerns for Veterans with mental health disorders; (2) is potentially cost-effective and easy to disseminate nationally; and (3) focuses on improving Veterans' academic functioning and quality of life is substantially different than current VA mobile app offerings.

Conditions

Mental Health; Depression; Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder; Anxiety; Substance Use Disorder

Keywords

Education; Students; Veteran; College; Mobile applications

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (1)

• System Usability Scale (SUS)

  The System Usability Scale (SUS) a 10-item measure, scored on a 5-point Likert scale, that assesses human-computer interaction. Respondents are asked to rate 10 statements on a 5-point Likert scale (1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree). All SUS items focus on their experience using the mobile application, for example, "I would imagine that most people would learn to use this system very quickly." Each item is rescored, totaled, and multiplied by 2.5 to get a SUS total score ranging from 0 to 100. Higher scores indicate greater usability of a technology system, with above-average usability of a system suggested by a score \>68, while a score \>80 indicates high usability.

  4-week time point

Secondary Outcomes (4)

• Acceptability E-Scale (AES)

  4-week time point

• The Academic Self-Efficacy Scale (ASES)

  Baseline

• The Coping With Education Barriers Subscale (CWBS)

  Baseline

• Military to Civilian Questionnaire (M2C-Q)

  Baseline

Study Arms (1)

VetEd Mobile Application

EXPERIMENTAL

Participants be provided with the VetEd mobile app, with instructions on how to utilize the app at home over a four-week period.

Behavioral: VetEd Mobile Application

Interventions

VetEd Mobile Application BEHAVIORAL

Participants be provided with the VetEd mobile app, with instructions on how to utilize the app at home over a four-week period

VetEd Mobile Application

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 18 Years+
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• Currently enrolled in a minimum of at least 2 courses in a higher education setting
• Current DSM-5 mental health disorder
• Competent to provide informed consent
• Owns a smart phone capable of supporting mobile apps
• Are willing and able to read in English
• Self-report struggling with current course activities

You may not qualify if:

• Not currently enrolled as a student
• Current or recent (within 1 month of study entry) moderate or severe DSM-5 alcohol or drug use disorder
• Cognitive impairment that would interfere with participation
• Severe suicidal ideation or a psychiatric hospitalization within the past month

Sponsors & Collaborators

• VA Office of Research and Development: lead

Study Sites (1)

VA Bedford HealthCare System, Bedford, MA

Bedford, Massachusetts, 01730-1114, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Psychological Well-Being; Depression; Stress Disorders, Post-Traumatic; Anxiety Disorders; Substance-Related Disorders

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Personal Satisfaction; Behavior; Behavioral Symptoms; Stress Disorders, Traumatic; Trauma and Stressor Related Disorders; Mental Disorders; Chemically-Induced Disorders

Results Point of Contact

• Title: Dr. Erin Reilly
• Organization: Department of Veterans Affairs

Erin.Reilly@va.gov

781-687-2000

Study Officials

• Erin D. Reilly, PhD

  VA Bedford HealthCare System, Bedford, MA

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Publication Agreements

• PI is Sponsor Employee: Yes

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NA
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: FED
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Model Details: Participants will be provided with VetEd (the Veteran student support mobile app) and log-in information, to utilize at home over a four-week period. During that time, they will be provided with instructions on how to use the app. Participants will be asked to complete at least two in-app tasks per week, including for example setting up an educational roadmap, tracking course assignments, learning about successful study strategies, completing a coping exercise, and finding information related to GI Bill benefits.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: April 15, 2022
• First Posted: April 25, 2022
• Study Start: June 1, 2023
• Primary Completion: August 30, 2024
• Study Completion: September 30, 2024
• Last Updated: October 31, 2025
• Results First Posted: October 31, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-10

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

US (1)