WILLIAMSBURG, Va. (WAVY) — More than 100,000 veterans transition from military service to civilian life each year, and though many find the change in lifestyle difficult, thanks to the Warrior-Scholar Project, they’re equipped to walk into their new beginning.

All week long, it’s been boots on the ground for a group of veterans, but this time, the popular catch phrase takes on a whole new meaning.

“The days are long because we take the term bootcamp very seriously,” said Harry Foster, a Warrior-Scholar Project lead humanities fellow. “The primary purpose is to serve as a skill bridge from the military into higher-ed.”

Transitioning veterans often face homelessness, mental health issues, disability and most commonly, unemployment. The Warrior-Project teams up with universities and colleges around the country, such as William & Mary in Williamsburg, helping them build skills beyond the military.

“There are three programs,” he said. “They’re not subject-specific, in the sense that we are trying to give them skills that are broadly applicable to fields. So it’s titled the Humanities Program because the fields or the skills that we teach are as applicable to an English major as they would be to a political science major.”

Each participant is tasked to complete 75 academic hours, although they’re not specifically graded. The goal is personal growth and developing a sense of purpose as they learn from real college professors.

“A lot of veterans, though, I will say, expressed being bad students in high school or even in college,” Foster said. “Some veterans find it difficult to write, to express themselves. What I will say is that Warrior-Scholar has gotten really good at addressing all of that.”

Foster knows the hardships all too well as a veteran himself who’s a product of the program after serving five years in the Marine Corps.

“What makes the Warrior-Scholar Project successful is that everyone who comes here has a desire to work,” Foster said, “and it’s very built into the advertisement, into how we market ourselves, that this is a program that you can come to and gain academic confidence.”

The Warrior-Scholar Project was first introduced in 2011 on the campus of Yale University. About 300 veterans sign up annually across 25 campuses nationwide. There are currently six veterans enrolled at William & Mary. The program wraps up on Aug. 2.

For more information on the Warrior-Scholar Project, click here.