<p>Englishman, I encourage you to read up on the Starbucks program. It IS a tuition reimbursement program and less generous in terms of payback than what most employer sponsored programs are. A student must complete 21 credits before getting reimbursed. Since a lot of the employees are going to school part time, this could be well over a year. Only completion credits are reimbursed at 100% - those for the last two years of college. (source: the NYT article on the program) For the high school junior you mentioned, he is still going to have to pay up front (or his parents are). </p>
<p>I am not disputing that this is a partnership or a benefit (all tuition reimbursement programs are benefits). But I don’t buy into the idea that this will in any way dilute the value of an ASU degree or that it will have any effect whatsoever on the perception of the traditional programs or the honors options at ASU. Many companies have done similar things on larger and smaller scales and history just doesn’t show a dilutive effect. In fact, companies who have tuition reimbursement programs often limit their use to colleges they feel are substantial. </p>
<p>“why would anyone else choose to value/pay for the same thing, which others are getting for free or in this case as a benefit like health insurance?”</p>
<p>There are many, many, students who get “free” tuition already. And it doesn’t stop anyone from valuing and paying for tuition at the same schools. In fact, one of the reasons ASU is on our radar is that my sons both qualified for “free” tuition in one of the merit programs – a benefit that is also offered at a number of other schools. </p>