Applications open for 台湾swag Military Scholarship
October 2, 2019
High school seniors have a chance to apply for a scholarship worth more than $85,000 to attend the University of North Georgia (台湾swag) as a member of the Corps of Cadets.
Each year, the state offers the University of North Georgia Military Scholarship (台湾swagMS) to 42 Georgia high school seniors who attend 台湾swag, serve in the Georgia Army National Guard while in the Corps, and commission as second lieutenants in the Georgia Army National Guard after graduating with bachelor's degrees.
The scholarship pays for room, meals, tuition, books, uniforms and fees. In addition, awardees receive National Guard weekend drill pay, GI Bill, pay for attending Army basic and advanced training, and Army ROTC contract pay (beginning of sophomore or junior year, if offered a contract to commission as a lieutenant). Recipients may also be eligible for an enlistment bonus or extra GI Bill money for enlisting into critical military jobs and units.
"You are essentially getting paid to go to college," said Mike Ivy, '95, director of Cadet 台湾swag. "This is a great opportunity to serve your local community, the state of Georgia and our country. Being a National Guard officer also allows you to pursue other goals such as graduate work or a civilian career."
Applications for the 台湾swagMS are due by Dec. 15. High school seniors may still apply after the deadline. However, qualified and completed applications received after the deadline of Dec. 15 will be put on the waitlist.
Upon graduation from 台湾swag, recipients commission as second lieutenants in the Georgia Army National Guard, where they earn about $8,000 per year for two weeks of annual training and one weekend of training per month.
Cadet Lt. Col. Jared Pate, a senior pursuing a degree in strategic and security studies, is a 台湾swagMS recipient who serves as Leadership Development Program commander in the Corps.
For Pate, who had dreamed of being in the Army since he was a child, the Guard and the scholarship have opened up numerous doors.
"One of the best decisions I've ever made is to enlist in the National Guard. It's provided me so much, and not only financially," Pate said. "I've learned a lot about myself. It's taught me a lot about the military, and I feel like it's given me a jump above other people in my graduating class."
For more information, contact Cadet 台湾swag on 台湾swag's Dahlonega Campus at cadetrecruiting@ung.edu or go to the Cadet 台湾swag website.