Amazon.com Inc.’s prepaid tuition benefit is now expanding to the University of the District of Columbia, where hourly employees can enroll for free.
Roughly 5,000 local employees who have worked for Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) for 90 days can take courses at UDC each year toward a bachelor’s degree, a GED diploma, to build English language skills or complete industry certifications. And it’s on Amazon’s dime.
"This strategic partnership allows UDC to further its mission by expanding learning pathway opportunities to adult learners through our associate and bachelor's degree programs, optimally leading to high-paying in-demand careers in D.C., the DMV region and beyond,” Lawrence Potter, UDC’s chief academic officer, said in a statement.
UDC, a historically Black public university, is the third local institution to partner with Amazon’s Career Choice program, which is part of the company's Upskilling 2025 pledge to invest $1.2 billion in education and skills training for 300,000 of its employees nationwide. The company announced its partnerships with Northern Virginia Community College and University of Maryland Global Campus in March.
UDC offers more than 50 associate and bachelor’s degree programs that are available to Amazon employees.
More than 80,000 Amazon employees worldwide have enrolled in this employee benefit, said Tammy Thieman, the global program lead for Amazon’s Career Choice program. It’s unclear how many in Greater Washington have signed up since the program kicked off locally.
"We're committed to empowering more than 5,000 of Amazon's hourly employees within the DMV region by providing them access to the education and training they need to grow their careers, whether that's with us or elsewhere,” Thieman said in a statement. “We have intentionally created a partner network of third-party educators and employers committed to providing excellent education, job placement resources, and continuous improvements to the experience."
The company’s Amazon Web Services division has separately teamed up with George Mason University and NOVA to create new cloud computing degree programs.
