By Joe Taylor Jr.
Career Colleges Columnist
One of the best ways to move ahead in your career is to return to school. A college degree in your field usually means a better chance for promotion and better pay. In some cases, a college degree may catapult you into that job you've always wanted.
The prospect of taking college classes, however, is daunting for professionals who already work full time. The threat of college demands eating away at career and family commitments scares off many qualified degree candidates.
Free College Education
The good news is that many companies, especially large corporations, place a lot of value on career development. Some will pay for 100% of the costs for a college degree if the employees' coursework relates to their job. Other companies offer onsite career training and continuing education. This commitment to school-based job training often produces workers who spend their entire careers with the same employer, significantly reducing the company's labor costs.
Who Benefits from Career Training?
Company-funded career training is especially beneficial to employees who were hired right out of high school, or before they completed a college degree. Bayer, Johnson & Johnson, and Pfizer are a few of many large corporations that will help employees pay for a college degree. Bayer often asks employees to pursue degrees in fields where the company wants to grow. Other companies, such as Southwest Airlines, offer in-house programs that provide career development.
No program? Ask for one.
If your company doesn't have career development programs, don't be discouraged. If you can show your boss how much going back to school will benefit your job performance, it may convince him or her to help pay for part of your college degree expenses. Big companies have long seen the rewards of career development, and smaller companies are likely to buy into the idea as well.
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