Boston throws lifeline to those who lack matric
Equivalent certificate can be obtained through online study
NEW OPPORTUNITIES in education and in the workplace are always exciting. At the beginning of this year, Boston City Campus & Business College announced just such an opportunity, allowing working people to obtain a matric equivalent without interrupting their work day. This has been hugely successful.
So, don’t let the lack of a matric stand between you and your dreams of a tertiary qualification.
You too can do the GED certificate, which is equivalent to the South African matric, and opens doors to college and university study. Best of all, the GED certificate is open to everyone and can be done in a short space of time – and even in the convenience of your home.
Issued by the American Council on Education, this certificate is regarded as a lifeline for many people who don’t manage to complete school due to circumstances or events in their lives.
It also serves as an alternative to redoing matric, if you did not get the results you wanted.
It was created in 1942 as the equivalent of a secondary school leaving certificate. Since then, more than 20 million people worldwide have obtained the GED certificate.
Boston City Campus & Business College started offering tuition towards the GED certificate at the beginning of this year.
“We saw that there was a great need for an equivalent to matric,” says Kerry Damons, head of marketing at Boston City Campus & Business College.
“There are quite a few South Africans who dream of getting a degree or diploma but cannot do so because they don’t have a National Senior Certificate.
“Some failed their matric, some quit school before getting to matric, while others completed matric but got poor results on their National Senior Certificate.
“Going back to school is not always a great option, and so they come to us for an alternative, which is the American GED certificate.”
Boston offers the GED certificate online. Students log in to the online studying system daily, as if they are entering a physical classroom. As the students go through their learning material and complete assignments, the system records it and passes on the information to “live” Boston tutors on duty at the college.
The Boston tutors monitor the students’ academic progress and assist them, wherever they are, via e-mail or phone.
They are also available to students at scheduled times when they need face-to-face assistance or a word of encouragement.
“Our students say studying like this is wonderful; they love having their virtual teacher guide them through their course privately. They like the fact that they can work at their own pace but enjoy support from a tutor every step of the way,” explains Eddie Oosthuizen head of the department of GED certificate studies at Boston City Campus & Business College.
“They also like the fact that they can choose to study online from home or they can go and sit in a classroom at their nearest Boston City Campus & Business College and learn online there, using the col- lege’s computers and wi-fi.”
The compulsory subjects that students have to pass are English reading, English writing, maths, science and social studies.
The GED allows students to complete one subject at a time. The benefit of this is that students can focus all their efforts and attention on one subject and have a better chance of achieving top marks. Once they pass the final exam for that subject, they move on to the next subject.
“The beauty of American GED certificate is you can work at your own pace in every sense of the word,” says Damons. “Students who have full-time jobs and families find it very convenient to do one subject at a time.”
The GED certificate is recognised by Higher Education South Africa (HESA).
This means once you pass your GED exams, you can apply for admission at local universities, as well as universities in the US. Before HESA issues your letter, they require a letter of acceptance from an American university, which Boston facilitates for students.
To find out more about the GED certificate, contact a student adviser at the Boston City Campus & Business College near you or phone 011 551 2000.