WGU and National Military Family Association Announce New Scholarship for Military Families

NASHVILLE, Tenn., Nov. 6, 2014 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In celebration of Military Appreciation Month, the parent university of WGU Tennessee, Western Governors University (WGU), and National Military Family Association (NMFA) have teamed up to announce a new scholarship to help active-duty military, their spouses, and veterans go back to school and earn their bachelor's and master's degrees.

The WGU Military Appreciation Scholarship, valued at up to $2,000 per student, will be applied at the rate of $500 per six-month term, renewable for up to four terms, toward WGU's already-low tuition of about $3,000 per term. WGU will award up to 50 scholarships to new students nationwide; five of the scholarships are reserved solely for the NMFA and its network of military spouses. Applications are being accepted now through February at tennessee.wgu.edu/militaryappreciation.     

WGU—honored six consecutive years by Military Advanced Education Magazine as a Top Military-Friendly School and five consecutive years as a Military Friendly^® School by militaryfriendlyschools.com—is designed to provide the kind of flexibility that nontraditional students like service members and their families need. Of the 50,000 students currently enrolled in WGU nationwide, more than 3,000 are active-duty military personnel, veterans, or dependent family members of military personnel. More than 1,700 WGU students live in Tennessee.

WGU uses an innovative approach to earning a degree called competency-based education, which measures learning rather than time spent in class. Designed to meet the needs of adult learners, competency-based education allows students to take advantage of their knowledge and experience to move quickly through material they already know so they can focus on what they still need to learn. WGU faculty members work one-on-one with students as mentors, offering guidance, support, and individualized instruction. While WGU's degree programs are rigorous and challenging, competency-based learning makes it possible for students to accelerate their programs, saving both time and money.

WGU's 50-plus accredited degree programs—in the high-demand fields of business, information technology, education, and health professions, including nursing—are designed in collaboration with councils of experts from industry and academia, ensuring that students graduate knowing what they need to know to be successful. Students begin their terms on the first day of any month, and they graduate as soon as they are able to complete all the required coursework.

To be eligible for a WGU Military Appreciation Scholarship, an applicant must be a new WGU student and be officially admitted to WGU. While multiple scholarships will be awarded, it is a competitive program, with scholarships awarded based on a candidate's academic record, readiness for online study, and current competency, as well as other considerations. The deadline to apply is February 28, 2015.

For more information, visit tennessee.wgu.edu/militaryappreciation.    

About WGU Tennessee
WGU Tennessee is an online, nonprofit, competency-based university established to expand Tennesseans' access to higher education throughout the state. Formed through a partnership between the state of Tennessee and nationally recognized Western Governors University, WGU Tennessee is open to all qualified Tennessee residents. The university offers more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in the high-demand career fields of business, K-12 teacher education, information technology, and health professions, including nursing.

Degrees are granted under the accreditation of Western Governors University, which is accredited through the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities (NWCCU). Teachers College programs are accredited by the National Council for Accreditation of Teacher Education (NCATE), and nursing programs are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (CCNE).*

In addition to WGU Tennessee, there are four other WGU state-based, state-endorsed universities: WGU Indiana, established in June 2010; WGU Washington, established in April 2011; WGU Texas, established in August 2011; and WGU Missouri, established in February 2013.

For more information, visit the WGU Tennessee website, http://tennessee.wgu.edu/, or call 855-948-8495.

*Western Governors University offers nursing programs that are accredited by the Commission on Collegiate Nursing Education (One Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 5380, Washington, DC 20036, 202-877-6791).

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SOURCE WGU Tennessee