The University of St. Thomas Joins SAGE Tuition Rewards® College Enrollment Consortium
Philadelphia, PA (PRWEB) September 11, 2015 -- The University of St. Thomas, the largest private college in Minnesota, serving more than 10,500 undergraduate and graduate students, has joined the SAGE Scholars Tuition Rewards Private College & University Enrollment Consortium.
A Catholic comprehensive urban university, St. Thomas fosters a tradition of service to the public and inspires students to lead, work and serve with the skill and empathy. Located in Minnesota's vibrant Twin Cities area, St. Thomas offers its students a wide range of academic opportunities, cultural events and volunteer activities. It is a campus connected to a larger community to meet the challenges of today's society.
With a network of 97,000 alumni, St. Thomas students gain an edge through internships at hundreds of companies. 92 of Minnesota's 100 largest publicly-held corporations are located within 15 minutes of the St. Paul campus along the Mississippi River, including 3M, Best Buy, General Mills and Target.
Founded in 1885, St. Thomas emphasizes that education never stops, that real-world experience is essential and that education should be both challenging and engaging. 80 Catholic colleges and 8 Minnesota colleges participate in the SAGE consortium.
The SAGE program encourages families to save for college. Financial organizations (529 Plans, banks, credit unions, employers, insurance firms, mutual funds, etc.) use Tuition Rewards as a value-added benefit, enabling clients and employees to earn rewards points that students can redeem for guaranteed minimum scholarships – tuition discounts – at member colleges. Rewards points are similar to frequent flyer miles and are submitted at time of application. (1 point = $1.00)
SAGE's high school class of 2015 submitted Tuition Rewards® points valued at $45.1 million to consortium colleges (25% increase). Drexel University was the most popular college, receiving 248 rewards statements, correlated with applications.
Colleges that were most popular with SAGE's 2015 seniors included DePaul University, Duquesne University, Rochester Institute of Technology, Saint Norbert College, University of Dayton, University of San Diego, University of Tampa, Valparaiso University and Worcester Polytechnic Institute.
Member colleges absorb the scholarships, which are capped at one full year’s tuition (spread evenly over four years) and can be included with other aid, as a marketing cost to effectively reach out to a wider audience than an individual college could on its own.
Participation in Tuition Rewards is free to colleges and to families. Member colleges benefit by free marketing access to participating students (once they reach 9th grade). Colleges find the demographics attractive – families who have expressed interest in private higher education. Students typically are well-qualified academically and financially. SAGE's student database is expanding; the current senior class is 12.4% larger than 2015's senior class.
"SAGE Scholars has proven to be an effective way to promote the affordability of private colleges,” declared Dr. Allen P. Splete, former President of the Council of Independent Colleges and a member of the SAGE Board of Directors and its Advisory Council.
Robert Savett, Sage Scholars, Inc., http://www.tuitionrewards.com, +1 (215) 564-9930 Ext: 14, [email protected]
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