Starbucks College Achievement Plan

 

 

Image from http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-10-07/starbucks-is-mostly-paying-for-1-000-employees-to-go-to-college
Image from http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2014-10-07/starbucks-is-mostly-paying-for-1-000-employees-to-go-to-college
Maxine Camero
Staff Writer

 

Starbucks has partnered up with Arizona State University (ASU) to offer their employees the chance to get their bachelors degrees with total tuition reimbursement.  

“Partners may choose from 40 undergraduate degree programs through ASU’s research driven and top-ranked program, delivered online,” according to Starbucks’ website.

Starbucks.com further explains that over 70 percent of their employees are students, or are wanting to go to school. Starbucks’ goal is to give their employees who wish to pursue a higher education the opportunity to do so without worrying about the financial burden that comes with college.

A survey conducted by Citigroup and Seventeen Magazine in 2013 found that four out of five students work at least part time, and on average 19 hours a week during the school year.

Minimum wage in Illinois is $8.25 an hour; 19 hours of work a week will total over $156 a week before taxes.

Currently a Lewis and Clark Community College in-district credit credit cost $104. In one week, students would have enough to pay for a single class, but students looking to pursue an education after L&C at a four year university will have to pay much more.

According to collegeboard.org, private nonprofit-four year colleges have tuition and fees published on their sites at an average of $31,230 per year.

With the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, student, or potential students who are employees at either: Starbucks, Teavana,  La Boulange, Evolution Fresh and Seattle’s Best Coffee stores can apply for the program. However, they cannot already have a bachelors degree.

“Partners (employees) admitted as a junior or senior, according to ASU’s admission requirements, will earn full tuition reimbursement for each year of coursework they complete toward a bachelor’s degree. Freshmen and sophomores will receive a partial scholarship and need-based financial aid toward the foundational work of completing their degree. Partners will have no commitment to remain at Starbucks past graduation,” according to Starbucks’ website.

As for how the college is paid for, ASU reimburses a portion of the tuition, and Starbucks reimburses the other. The percentage ASU and Starbucks reimburses students for differs between being a freshman/sophomore, or a junior/senior in college.

The College Achievement Plan is providing both traditional and nontraditional students a chance to gain a higher education that might not have been an option before.

“I think that it’s a really good idea. It’s a good way for people to go back into college if they dropped out when they were younger… and for people that are financially unable to go to college or they can’t pay the entire thing, it’s a good opportunity for them as well,” said Taylor Beimfohr, a Mass Communications major at L&C, and a Starbucks partner who plans to enroll in the Starbucks College Achievement Plan in the future.

To be eligible for the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, you must be an employee, and be working 20 hours or more at any of their chains.

For more information on the Starbucks College Achievement Plan and an FAQ page for the plan, visit www.starbucks.com/collegeplan and join the conversation using hashtag #CollegeAchievementPlan.

 

Contact Maxine at mcamero@lc.edu

 

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