Abstract
Purpose – This paper aims to describe how coffeehouse chain Starbucks has teamed up with Arizona State University (ASU) to offer a big discount on online undergraduate education for 135,000 employees. Design/methodology/approach – It outlines the origins of the Starbucks college achievement plan, the form it takes and the aims it seeks to achieve. Findings – It explains that employees admitted to ASU as a junior or senior earn full tuition reimbursement for each semester of full-time coursework they complete toward a bachelor’s degree. Students already in their first or second years of study are eligible for a partial tuition scholarship and need-based financial help for two years of full-time study. Employees do not have to carry on working at Starbucks after graduation. Practical implications – It reveals that the Starbucks investment is designed to support the nearly 50 per cent of college students in the USA today who fail to complete their degrees because of a mounting debt, a tenuous work-life balance and a lack of support. Social implications – It claims that the scheme can help to repair the fractured American dream. Originality/value – It demonstrates how the Starbucks college achievement plan will provide an academic foundation along with the flexibility, financing and support that working students need to complete their degree.
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