COTC to offer more than $1.2 million in new scholarships for healthcare students

News

Central Ohio Technical College (COTC) was recently awarded $612,039.96 in Choose Ohio First (COF) funding from the Ohio Department of Higher Education. The funding will be used to provide scholarships to students in the college’s nursing and allied healthcare programs over the next five years. Moreover, COTC will match the COF award by offering an additional $612,040 in scholarships from institutional and donor funds.

“We are grateful to Choose Ohio First for recognizing COTC’s commitment and efforts to advance student success. This funding fuels our mission and provides more students access to our exceptional healthcare programs, faculty and facilities,” said COTC President John M. Berry, PhD. “COTC has a tradition of strong licensure and registry pass rates among our healthcare graduates, many of whom go on to provide excellent care for people in their local community in hospitals and healthcare facilities. The impact of these scholarships is sure to be felt beyond our four campuses.”

Choose Ohio First Scholarships

In the upcoming academic year, COTC will award COF scholarships to new students who enroll in an eligible degree or certificate program. Students will be awarded a maximum of $2,782 per semester. Eligible programs include:

In addition, COTC will offer a new associate degree in respiratory therapy, which is currently pending program accreditation. Once available, students in this program will be eligible for the COF scholarship.

More information will be available soon. Questions about scholarships may be directed to the Office of Student Financial Services at 740.366.9435 or NWK-studentfinancialservices@mail.cotc.edu.

Making College Affordable

Students in nursing and allied healthcare programs account for about half of COTC’s total enrollment, and graduates are vital to area employers’ workforce needs for trained healthcare professionals. Of the students in selective programs at COTC, 61% are eligible for the Federal Pell Grant which is awarded to undergraduate students who display exceptional financial need. For these and other students, financial barriers may impact their retention and time to degree completion.

The COF scholarships complement efforts by the college to remove barriers for students and aid them in achieving a degree or certificate in the shortest timeframe possible. By applying COF dollars first, many students with financial need may have state and federal grant resources that could be applied to other costs of attendance such as childcare, transportation and housing, and books and educational materials. Students also have free access to holistic, wraparound services such as an academic success coach, tutoring and basic needs support to help them stay on track toward graduation.

Apply to COTC

COTC’s healthcare programs are competitive and have selective admissions. There are enrollment requirements in addition to the free COTC admission application. Students must submit a program application and supporting material to be considered for admission to the program by the specified deadline (varies based on program and campus).

To get started, attend a program information session to learn about admissions requirements, expectations for selection and application deadlines.

Choose Ohio First

The Choose Ohio First Scholarship is designed to significantly strengthen Ohio’s competitiveness within STEM disciplines and to increase the number of STEM teachers.

The Ohio Department of Higher Education provides funding to Ohio’s colleges and universities to support students in innovative academic programs. Participating universities and colleges award scholarships to students desiring a certificate, associate degree, baccalaureate degree or graduate degree in eligible STEM fields or to students who want to become STEM teachers.

“Having campuses on our list of Choose Ohio First awardees for the first time is a testament to the success — and the importance — of this program,” said Chancellor Randy Gardner. “I am pleased to have Central Ohio Technical College as a new Choose Ohio First partner and know it will do great work in preparing its STEM scholars.”

COTC is a fully accredited, public college dedicated to providing high-quality, accessible programs of technical education in response to current and emerging employment needs. COTC has four campus locations: Newark, Coshocton, Knox and Pataskala.