More than 1,000 Starbucks employees have enrolled for an upcoming semester at Arizona State University after the coffee giant announced its tuition reimbursement plan last summer, Inside Higher Ed reported.
The Starbucks College Achievement Plan is an effort to help its employees earn bachelor's degrees. Through the program, Starbucks will reimburse employees who are admitted at junior or senior level to one of 40-plus bachelor's programs offered online by Arizona State University.
"Degrees are about careers, and we're thinking about your future, whether you decide to stay with Starbucks or not," Starbucks explained on its website. "This program is designed to support college completion by offering full tuition reimbursement for juniors and seniors to finish their undergraduate degree, and providing an on-ramp and access to higher education for freshmen and sophomores."
Since the program's inception, 4,000 Starbucks workers started the admissions and application process, 2,000 completed it, and 1,800 were accepted, The Associated Press reported.
Although applicants, who represent every state and every retail role at Starbucks, are scattered across the university's 40 degree programs, the most popular degrees being pursued are psychology, lifestyle coaching, mass communication and media studies and English.
Through the Starbucks College Achievement Plan, which puts an emphasis on completion, the Seattle-based company will reimburse students every time they complete 21 credits. Participants can enroll as a full-time or part-time student.
The coffee giants said it is too early "to tell how much the company will end up paying in tuition reimbursement for the first batch of students," the AP reported.
Reimbursements to Starbucks workers will vary due to financial aid, however, the company said it expects to spend tens of millions of dollars" on tuition reimbursement.
For freshmen and sophomore years, Starbucks and Arizona State will invest around $6,500 on average toward the estimated $20,000 in overall tuition. Workers can pay the remaining $13,500 through financial aid programs.
