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By Rachel Sterzer Gibson, Church News
Despite already providing tuition rates significantly lower than other higher education institutions, BYU–Pathway Worldwide announced that it will be extending even greater tuition discounts to more students.
Beginning this fall semester, BYU–Pathway’s Heber J. Grant Tuition Discount will now be extended to BYU–Pathway students pursuing online degrees and certificates from BYU–Idaho and Ensign College. Previously, the discount was only available to students enrolled in the foundational PathwayConnect program.
(The PathwayConnect program is designed to provide students with entry-level, preparatory coursework, including courses in math, English and religion. Afterward, students can work toward a certificate or degree, facilitated through a partnership with Ensign College or BYU–Idaho.)
Eligible BYU–Pathway students will be able to receive a 10%, 25% or 50% discount based on financial need.
“This scholarship will change lives,” said BYU–Pathway President Brian K. Ashton in an August 2 news release. “It will change families.”
When the Heber J. Grant Tuition Discount was first announced in November 2021, President Ashton noted that cost is the leading reason people give for not attending college, and many BYU–Pathway students continue to struggle to afford a degree.
This extension of the discount will provide access to more than 60,000 students, which will bring higher education into reach for many who could not otherwise afford it, President Ashton said of the recent announcement. “BYU–Pathway is focused on building Zion by remedying the economic and spiritual poverty of students around the world.”
To qualify for the discount, students must apply to BYU–Pathway Worldwide and complete an interactive lesson about principles of self-reliance.
Both new and continuing degree-seeking students who apply for the tuition discount by September 9 can receive it beginning with the Fall 2022 term, which goes from September through December. After completing PathwayConnect, students must reapply for the discount every two years.
After the original announcement last November, Andy Cargal, BYU–Pathway Worldwide director of communications, explained to the Church News that the rate of students’ discounts is based upon answers to a variety of questions, including inquiries about their ability to provide for themselves or their families and whether they have access to at least two meals a day, stable housing, reliable internet, etc.
However, BYU–Pathway recently announced that it will guarantee the 50% tuition discount for students in Africa in their first year. By 2023, BYU–Pathway hopes to extend that discount to students in Africa during their degree program.
BYU–Pathway also provides a 25% tuition discount to returned missionaries for their PathwayConnect courses. And those who start their degree with the significantly reduced tuition from PathwayConnect can lock in those lower rates for their entire degree program.
The tuition discount is named for Church President Heber J. Grant, who led the Church through the economic turmoil of the Great Depression and World War II. “BYU–Pathway students receiving this scholarship are encouraged to set goals to become better stewards of their talents and to cultivate the characteristics needed for continued success,” the tuition discount website reads.
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