Continuting Education With Your Employer's Help

I have always worked for non-profit organizations.  One of my first and longest held positions was as director of public relations and annual giving for a social service agency.  While the job was very rewarding, I knew from the get-go my salary would always be less than stellar.

To balance out the smaller than average salaries, our agency provided a benefits package that included generous vacation and sick leave, good insurance and a tuition assistance program.  By taking advantage of the tuition program, I was able to complete a master of arts in journalism at NIU, my alma mater, at a fantastically reduced cost.

I was 29 years old when I completed my M.A.  Last month, I completed another master’s – in Higher Education Administration - just shy of my 62nd birthday.  My employer, Robert Morris University, helped make it possible.

Large and small businesses throughout the country have developed employee assistance programs that make a variety of perqs available to their employees.  In addition to tuition assistance which may pay part or all of tuition costs, services such as counseling, wellness centers and programs, financial and legal advice, leave programs - and many other benefits - help promote employee loyalty, growth and well being.  When an academic program is directly applicable to the work of a corporation or organization, the employer benefits as well.

Not long ago I interviewed two women who had completed the MBA program at Robert Morris.  One woman was looking to improve her position in management at her company and had its complete support and financial assistance as she worked on her degree.  “I’m already using human resource and management concepts at work,” she told me.  Taking the principles from the classroom and directly applying them on the job enabled her to make the most of her education.

The other graduate had spent 20 years in the Navy. She was specifically looking for a graduate program in human resources. The benefits package available to her as a veteran helped make it possible for her to complete her degree and embark on a new career.

Helping employees grow in their positions is a benefit that most employers recognize as essential for the organization’s success. No matter the size of your company, find out if it offers a perquisite such as tuition assistance to help make your own dream of a degree a reality.