Fiat Chrysler US launches no-cost college for dealership employees

Posted on 23 Nov 2015 by Tim Brown
The Fiat Chrysler head office - image courtesy of FCA

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) in the US has launched a national program called Degrees@Work which offers US dealership employees, and their immediate families, debt-free college education with Strayer University.

FCA US is not only the first and only company in the automotive industry to offer the programs, it’s also the first US company of any type to provide a no-cost, no-debt, college degree to both employees and their immediate families.

The expanded Degrees@Work program and the new Degrees@Work Family offering will enable FCA US dealerships to attract top talent, improve the skillset of existing employees, lessen the burden of paying for college for families and significantly increase employee retention.

“After the success of the initial regional launch, we’re thrilled to expand the benefit not only to all of our dealerships nationwide, but also to dealership employees’ immediate family members,” said Al Gardner, dead of dealer network development – FCA US LLC.
“When we began to seek out a partner to provide education benefits to our employees and their families, we focused on finding a top-notch institution. Strayer has the resources and the experience to provide a world-class education to our employees and their families.”

Strayer University, which is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, will offer associate, bachelor’s and master’s degrees to all participating FCA US dealership employees and their immediate family members. Strayer University is a postsecondary institution with a more than 120-year history educating working adult students online and at campus locations across the country.

“We are proud to partner with a true innovator like FCA US to offer this first-of-its-kind employee benefit,” said Karl McDonnell, CEO of Strayer Education, which owns Strayer University. “At Strayer, we’re dedicated to improving the way education and business work together. We’re thrilled to continue our partnership with FCA US to tackle college affordability and the skills gap head on.”

The program was developed using input from dealers and their employees. Depending on the selected program of study, courses will range from business administration and accounting to education, information systems and other areas.

Courses will be offered online with 24/7 access for flexibility around work schedules, as well as at Strayer’s campus locations throughout the United States. Dealers’ employees can have their training and work experience evaluated for college credit to accelerate completion of a degree program.

“Families are often faced with tough choices about how to pay for college,” said Gardner. “Expanding this benefit to employees’ immediate family members positions our dealer network as the ’employers of choice.’”