SALT LAKE CITY — Military veterans and their spouses may have another reason to enroll at Western Governors University to start their college career or complete an unfinished degree.
In light of the Veterans Day holiday, the Utah-based online university announced a nationwide scholarship fund of $125,000 for veterans and their spouses enrolling for the first time. The scholarship will be split between 50 recipients, who may each be eligible for up to $2,500 over the course of four six-month terms.
WGU spokesman Doug Smeath said the scholarship is intended to help those who have thought about going back to school but haven't gotten started.
"This scholarship is meant to help give a little incentive and some added help and support to make that decision and actually enroll," Smeath said. "We wanted to do something to say thanks to our people who have served. We offered this scholarship as a way of expanding the already great access we have for military and veteran students."
For Michael Zindel, going to school online has made balancing work toward a business degree and life as an injured U.S. Army veteran and a stay-at-home dad a little easier. He said the scholarship would be a meaningful addition to mentoring and counseling services already provided to veteran students.
"I think that would be very beneficial," said Zindel, who lives in West Jordan. "WGU is already pretty cheap compared to other universities, online universities especially."
Cate Mulder, who is a U.S. Air Force veteran and currently serves in the Utah Air National Guard in Bountiful, is nearing completion of an accounting degree at WGU. She said the scholarship would help veterans whose education isn't covered by funds from the post-9/11 GI Bill.
"My education, for the most part, has been covered with very little out-of-pocket expenses," Mulder said. "But for those military members who have gotten out without full education benefits, it absolutely would help them."
To be considered for the scholarship, applicants must be admitted to the institution, complete a scholarship application, provide evidence of veteran status or their spouse's status, submit previous college transcripts and fill out the federal financial aid application known as FAFSA.
Funds will be awarded on a competitive basis based on each candidate's academic record, financial need and current academic competency. Applications are being accepted now through Jan. 31 at www.wgu.edu/veterans. Additional military scholarships are also available online.
Smeath said the scholarship uses internal funds from the university, and it likely won't be a permanent scholarship. But university leaders may consider allocating the funding again next year, he said.
"I'm sure we'll look at reinstituting it next year," he said.
Of the 62,000 students currently enrolled at Western Governors University nationwide, more than 8,300 are active-duty military personnel, veterans or their dependent family members. About 4,300 students at the institution live in Utah, and 158 of them serve in active duty or are military veterans, according to Smeath.
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