Students head back to school with perks at Horry-Georgetown Technical College

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - Horry-Georgetown Technical College is offering new programs and free tuition as school starts back.

For the very first time, HGTC is offering two new degree programs. Students now have the option to be part of a first-of-its-kind boat-building program and a new hospitality management degree program.

The boat-building program is only offered at the Georgetown campus location. The program will teach students to understand the art and science of building boats. The certificate takes three weeks to complete. Students will learn the fundamental processes and methods of manufacturing.

The new hospitality management degree program offers three tracks: food service management, event planning management and hotel management. The program will only be hosted at the Grand Strand Campus at the International Culinary Institute of Myrtle Beach.

Instructor Joseph Bonaparte says HGTC has been working on getting programs like these for years.

“We’ve been talking about this for a long time,” said Bonaparte. “Then maybe about three years ago, we really got serious about needing assessments, interviewing people and doing focus groups about what they were looking for. We developed these three tracks in the program a hotel track, a food service track and an event management track.”

Along with the new degrees, HGTC is also offering free tuition in more than 60 programs.

Both new and returning students qualify for tuition assistance. To be eligible for the program, you must enroll in a high-skill or high-demand field, have to be taking a minimum of six credit hours and maintain an overall GPA of 2.0 or higher.

HGTC President Marilyn Fore says the school is offering the discount not only to help out students financially but to encourage more people to enroll.

“We make it assessable as possible,” said Fore. “For students to be able to complete their degrees, complete their training while they’re working, while they have their families and life is going on, but we’re providing them with zero tuition.”

Even though classes began Aug. 21, you still have until Aug. 30 to register for this semester.

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