Technical Certificate and Diploma Programs
Students enrolling in technical certificate and diploma programs of study may be eligible for financial assistance through a HOPE Grant for up to 63 semester hours in which HOPE benefits covered tuition (i.e., HOPE semester paid-hours). Additionally, students may receive a combination of HOPE Grant and HOPE scholarship payments for a maximum of 127 semester hours of attempted coursework at colleges and universities in Georgia.
HOPE Grant recipients must have earned a cumulative grade point average of at least 2.00 at the end of the academic term in which they accumulated at least 30 or 60 semester paid hours (excluding learning support and dual enrollment coursework) in order to remain eligible to receive HOPE benefits.
Students who have earned a baccalaureate degree or higher from any postsecondary institution are ineligible for the HOPE Grant. Special admission students —those students who do not declare a program of study —are not eligible for financial assistance
The Financial Aid Office will not award HOPE Grant benefits for coursework exempted through an exemption examination process; continuing education courses; audited courses; or for testing, training, or experience.
The HOPE Grant will cover tuition according to the year's factor rate for the coursework required by their programs of study. The factor rate is set each year by the Georgia General Assembly.
The HOPE Grant will cover the tuition associated with any required learning support courses students must take in order to gain regular admission status to the college provided the students meet the HOPE Grant eligibility requirements (see Provisional Admission).
The credit hours associated with the learning support coursework will count toward students' HOPE Grant paid-hours limit and the HOPE Grant/HOPE Scholarship combined paid-hours limit. Grades for learning support coursework are not considered in the calculation of students' grade point average at the different checkpoints.
State policy specifies that a maximum of 15 semester hours per term will count toward the paid hours limit event if the actual number of hours taken for the term is greater than 15.
Beginning with the 2013-2014 Award Year, students who are receiving the HOPE Grant may also be eligible for additional financial assistance from HOPE Career Grant for specific diploma programs. The designated HOPE Career Grant programs of study list approved by the Commission is updated and published by July 1 each year. A list of current year programs is available on the college website.
The Zell Miller Grant is for students seeking a technical certificate or diploma, regardless of the student's high school grade point average or graduation date. To be eligible for the Zell Miller Grant a student must earn and maintain a minimum 3.5 cumulative postsecondary GPA.