Becker College in Massachusetts unveiled the nation’s first “path-to-pro” esports scholarship in the country for Apex Legends in a press release earlier today.
In partnership with esports organization and analytics platform Team Genji and tournament venue Helix Esports, Becker’s program will offer a one-time payment of $5,000 to those who qualify through an extensive application process.
Starting March 15, current high school juniors and seniors are invited to register for Team Genji’s recruitment system. Select applicants will be invited by Team Genji to compete at the Helix Esports Apex Combine Tournament in April, hosted at the Helix Esports gaming center in northern New Jersey.
Helix’s combine will be North America’s largest amateur Apex tournament since the game’s release, meaning the talent pool will be stacked.
Competitors will be scouted by Becker staff and Team Genji’s proprietary talent analytics platform. Finalists will be invited to apply to Becker College and be considered for the scholarship.
Team Genji and Becker still encourage high school freshmen and sophomores to register for the recruitment system since an applicant’s eligibility is preserved until they are of age.
“Our goal is to give top Apex Legends players a unique chance to combine their talents with an education,” said Becker’s esports general manager Timothy Loew. “As home to the first varsity esports program in Massachusetts and the first bachelor in esports management degree in the U.S., Becker is excited to shape the future of competitive gaming in partnership with two of esports’ leading brands: Genji and Helix.”
On top of being the first college to offer an esports management bachelor’s program, Becker’s game design program was recognized as the third best in the world by The Princeton Review.
“Building a pipeline from high school to college, and then hopefully to a pro team like Genji is what we’re all about,” said Team Genji CEO William Collis. “This is just the beginning. We’ve proven the power of analytics by using big data to build the world’s number one Hearthstone team. And we’re excited to bring our platform into Apex Legends with the help of Helix and Becker.”
Anyone who’s admitted to and enrolls at Becker will be guaranteed the opportunity to tryout for the varsity Apex team, which will launch in the fall.
For more information on Becker College, visit www.becker.edu.
