US employees of the firm who work at least 20 hours a week are eligible¹ for the Starbucks College Achievement Plan.

 

Starbucks staff who are successfully enrolled² will receive partial tuition for the first two years, and full tuition for their final two years. 

 

The annual fee for online courses at the university can exceed $10,000.

 

After they've completed their bachelor's degree, the employees are not obligated to return to employment with Starbucks.

 

Starbucks staff looking to attend college online at Arizona State University (ASU) can choose from about 40 programmes including business, engineering, education and retail³ management.

 

 

In a statement posted on its website, the university said the initiative was designed to 'support the nearly 50% of college students in the United States today who fail to complete their degrees due to mounting debt, a tenuous⁵ work-life balance and a lack of support.' 

 

In that same statement, Howard Schultz, chairman and president at Starbucks said: "There's no doubt, the inequality within the country has created a situation where many Americans are being left behind. The question for all of us is, should we accept that, or should we try and do something about it. 

 

Supporting our partners' ambitions is the very best investment Starbucks can make. Everyone who works as hard as our partners do should have the opportunity to complete college, while balancing work, school and their personal lives."

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