WGU celebrates 3 year anniversary
Sep. 15—PORTSMOUTH — Western Governor's University Ohio celebrated their three year anniversary in June.
In 2018, WGU Ohio became a state-affiliated university. They offer four distinct colleges for undergraduate and graduate, IT, Business, Health Professional, and Teaching.
The online university is geared towards those who work full time and are looking to recieve or finish a college degree.
"We consider this the university of you," said Allen. "We fit around your busy schedule and make it accessible and affordable for you and it is 100% online as well."
Unlike many colleges, WGU is based off of when you can pass the classes and each student chooses their own pace to complete their degree.
Tuition is around $6,500 per year for undergraduate and around $7,500 for graduate and split into two 6 month courses.
In those 6 months you can take as many classes as you want for a cost of around $3,200.
"We're not just going to throw you out there. We have program mentors for support, evaluators that evaluate your work, and course instructors who also support you," said Allen. "Our ultimate goal is to get students started and to get students finished."
The college does have on time progress (OTP) meaning in those 6 months you can take as many or as little classes to stay on track.
For individuals who has taken college classes, credits can be transfered in to WGU.
"Whatever reason it didn't work out, life didn't work out, they weren't ready for campus, and they felt what they had going on in their life that online was best for them so WGU has became a home for students who felt like brick and mortar campus wouldn't work for them," said Allen.
Due to the pandemic, the schools numbers grew tremendously. WGU Ohio currently has around 4,400 students, as well as close to 7,000 alumni.
"I started May 4, 2020 and we were just over 3,200 students and now we have increased to 4,400," said Allen. "It just shows online education is kind of where we are going now."
Allen believes online education will start becoming more popular.
"Once upon a time there was a payphone everywhere you look and now everyone has a cell phone. That's how I look at WGU, like we've become the cell phone of education because everything is accessible and everything is around you," said Allen.
Allen said the average age of students is around 37 and many students are those who are already working, looking to move up and continue to improve their family legacy.
"Making communities safer, individuals better, and keeping talent in the state of Ohio is what education is all about," said Allen. "Whether you're dealing with work, family issues, or just family in general, the responsibilities you have, give online a try because individuals have seen the sustainability and affordability and our 7,000 graduates have shown how successful our program is."
For more information, visit WGU Ohio's webiste at https://www.wgu.edu/ohio.html.
Reach Darian Gillette at (740) 353-3101 ext. 1931, or by email at dgillette@aimmediamidwest.com.
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