April 16, 2024
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind., COLORADO SPRINGS and DENVER, Colo. – A new education partnership between Guild and Team USA, utilizing Purdue Global as a preferred online university degree provider, will provide eligible Team USA athletes — including Olympians, Paralympians, and hopefuls — with learning and career opportunities for long-term success on and off the field of play.
Purdue Global has been named the preferred online university and degree provider of the Guild and Team USA Learning Network. Current Team USA athletes and those who have represented the U.S. in top international competitions in the last 10 years are eligible for flexible, tuition-free education and skilling programs from the Learning Network.
Purdue Global — Purdue’s online university for working adults — has been an educational partner with Guild since May 2019. This additional partnership with Guild will cover a five-year period. Guild is the leader in opportunity creation for America’s workforce. The Guild Career Opportunity Platform™ helps employers invest in their employees through tuition-free education, career development and coaching.
“Given our mission of serving working adults, Purdue Global is uniquely qualified to serve these adults who are working so hard at their sport and their passion so that they can move forward with their educational goals at the same time,” Purdue Global Chancellor Frank Dooley said. “They can consider Purdue Global and Guild their coaches for their educational journey, helping them to the finish line.”
Team USA athletes spend, on average, 10 years of their adult lives training for the Olympic and Paralympic Games, so they often have to choose between their athletic success and long-term education and career planning. With 43% of athletes working either full or part-time in addition to training, an enhanced education and skilling opportunities that fit their dynamic schedules are vital. The educational partnership aims to improve the economic outlook, employability, skilling and support for the next chapter in Team USA members’ lives, especially by fitting earning a degree into their busy schedules.
“As an athlete, I’ve dedicated the majority of my life to reach this moment in my career and my education has remained a key pillar and priority throughout my training,” said Daniella Ramirez, Paris-bound Team USA artistic swimmer. “It’s incredible that through this program, Guild will make opportunities available to current and future Team USA athletes who are also driven by their educational pursuits and might otherwise have to sacrifice one or the other.”
Team USA members can choose from a vast catalog of courses and degree programs.
“We are proud to partner with Purdue Global to deliver a first-of-its-kind education and career support program to Team USA athletes, fueling their long-term career and earning success,” said Bijal Shah, CEO of Guild. “Purdue Global deeply understands the unique needs of working adult learners. Their high-quality degree programs will support athletes throughout their dynamic training schedules and deliver the skills to build competitive careers alongside their incredible athletic achievements.”
Providing access for all
Purdue Global is Purdue’s online university for working adults. Launched in 2018 as part of Purdue’s land-grant mission of increasing access to education for all, Purdue Global now has more than 60,000 alumni.
Built specifically for working adults who bring their life experience and knowledge into the online classroom, Purdue Global works with those adults to accept transfer credit from other institutions, and credits for prior learning and work experience, to help people earn their degree faster. Research by Purdue Global revealed that students want a university that will help them prepare for what’s next in their lives and careers; feel valued as working adults and get credit for what they know and have already done; and earn a degree that they can trust and be proud of — one that is backed by Purdue.
Purdue Global currently has more than 36,000 students enrolled and awards an estimated 11,000 degrees and certificates each year. The current student snapshot at Purdue Global includes these data points:
- 59% of students are 30 years of age or older.
- 52% of students have a child or other dependents.
- 50% are first-generation college students.
- 40% of students are from underserved populations.
- 28% are military-affiliated students, a population that includes uniformed personnel, veterans and eligible dependents.
“We help our students move forward into their next chapters,” Dooley said. “And knowing our faculty and staff, we’ll not only be cheering the Team USA members on during the events, but we’ll be cheering them on in the classroom, too.”
About Purdue Global
Purdue Global is Purdue’s online university for working adults who have life experience and often some college credits. It offers flexible paths for students to earn an associate, bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degree, based on their work experience, military service and previous college credits, no matter where they are in their life journey. Purdue Global is a nonprofit, public university accredited by the Higher Learning Commission and backed by Purdue University. For more information, visit purdueglobal.edu.
About Guild
The Guild Career Opportunity Platform™ enables forward-thinking employers to invest in their employees, unlocking life-changing opportunities for personal and professional growth through education and learning programs, career development, and one-on-one coaching. Guild partners with the nation’s largest employers — including Walmart, Chipotle, Discover, Hilton, Target, The Walt Disney Company, and healthcare systems like Providence Health and UCHealth — to create cultures of opportunity that help them attract and retain top talent, and build the workforce of the future. Guild offers a marketplace of curated education and learning programs designed for the success of working adults. Layered onto that is support, guidance, and resources at every step to help ensure the new skills employees are building translate into career pathways that are in demand at their companies — all without paying for tuition or career services on their own. For more information, visit www.guild.com.
Purdue Global Writer/Media Contacts:
- Amy Hawkinson, ahawkinson@purdueglobal.edu
- Matthew Oates, oatesw@purdue.edu
Guild Media Contact: Hope Grandon, press@guildeducation.com
Sources: Frank Dooley, Bijal Shah, Daniella Ramierz
Purdue Global Toolkit is available on Google Drive.