UNG announces partnership with Amazon

The University of North Georgia says it has entered into a partnership with Amazon, one that will come with tuition assistance and degree support for students at UNG.

From Clark Leonard, UNG…

The University of North Georgia is proud to partner with Amazon’s Career Choice program to provide affordable, quality and accessible education. Amazon Career Choice is an education benefit that empowers employees to learn new skills for career success at Amazon or elsewhere.

It provides a variety of education and upskilling opportunities including prepaid college tuition, industry certifications designed to lead to in-demand jobs, and foundational skills such as English language proficiency, high school diplomas and GEDs after working for the company for 90 days.

Beginning in summer 2023, eligible Amazon employees can receive tuition assistance and degree support through UNG that lead to new career opportunities. Qualifying Amazon employees start the process by applying for admission to UNG. After being accepted, the employees register for classes through the university’s student information system (Banner).

Following class registration, the employees sign into the Amazon Career Choice portal to enter their registration details. Once the request is in the Amazon Career Choice portal, UNG will see and approve a student’s request for a tuition payment, which will be pre-paid by Amazon on the student’s behalf.

In the U.S., Amazon is investing $1.2 billion to upskill more than 300,000 employees by 2025 to help move them into higher-paying, in-demand jobs.

“As a major local employer, Amazon is supporting the educational needs of its workforce by providing generous tuition assistance to help cover the cost of tuition at the University of North Georgia and other schools around the state,” Dr. Brett Morris, associate vice president for Enrollment Management, said. “We are excited about the opportunities this new partnership provides to the members of the communities we jointly serve.”

Since launching in 2012, Amazon Career Choice has connected with hundreds of schools across 14 countries to assist with its employees’ future career success, including offering options ranging from language skills to career paths and college credit programs. To date, more than 130,000 Amazon employees have participated in Career Choice.

“We’re looking forward to the University of North Georgia coming on board as an education partner for Career Choice, adding to the hundreds of best-in-class offerings available to our employees,” Tammy Thieman, global program lead of Amazon’s Career Choice program, said. “We’re committed to empowering our employees by providing them access to the education and training they need to grow their careers, whether that’s with us or elsewhere. We have intentionally created a partner network of third-party educators and employers committed to providing excellent education, job placement resources and continuous improvements to the experience. Today, over 130,000 Amazon employees around the world have participated in Career Choice, and we’ve seen first-hand how it can transform their lives.”

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