Piedmont Tech to Provide Scholarships to GED Graduates

Piedmont Technical College is partnering with the directors of Adult Education and Lifelong Learning in all seven counties of its service area to offer a new GED Scholarship to recent GED graduates.

Beginning in fall 2014, GED graduates enrolling full time in a certificate or diploma program will receive a $250 scholarship. Graduates enrolling in an associate degree program will receive $500 over two years.

For students enrolling part time, the scholarships will be pro-rated based on the number of credit hours taken.

“We’re excited about this opportunity for our students, and we’re pleased to be working with Piedmont Technical College on this initiative,” said Vickie Butler, Edgefield County director of Adult Education.

“This has the potential to be life changing for many of our students,” she said.

In today’s job market, some level of postsecondary training is becoming increasingly important.

According to a recent poll conducted by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation, it’s widely understood that attaining a degree or certificate after high school is a very important factor in getting a good job, and in a person’s financial security in the future.

Based on the same polling data, many also see cost as a major barrier for adult students considering coming back to school to earn a college degree.

PTC offers dozens of programs designed to train students for good, secure jobs in fields like Advanced Manufacturing, Healthcare, Criminal Justice and more, along with a wide variety of seamless transfer options to four-year institutions for those headed toward a bachelor’s degree.

Coupled with the region’s most affordable tuition rates, and the other forms of financial aid available at the college, such as the federal Pell Grant or Lottery Tuition Assistance, PTC hopes that this scholarship will offer recent GED grads an added incentive to consider college.

“For most GED graduates, making the commitment to go back to school is no small feat. Many of these individuals are balancing the responsibilities of work and family, in addition to taking on the academic challenge,” said Ray Brooks, president of Piedmont Technical College.

“We want all of these grads to know that we honor their accomplishments, and that we want to help them take the next step in their education,” he said.

For full details and eligibility requirements, visit www.ptc.edu/gedscholarship, or call the Office of Admissions at (864)941-8369.