Edited by Margery Weinstein
McDonald’s USA, LLC, employees who have an interest in working toward a college degree are in luck. One hundred percent of McDonald’s Restaurant Management and Mid-Management courses have been awarded college credit recommendations (up to 50) by the American Council on Education (ACE), the major coordinating body for the nation’s higher education institutions. According to ACE, the average McDonald’s restaurant manager has completed the equivalent of 23 credit hours—one semester of college—that can be transferred to many colleges and universities, and applied toward a two- or four-year degree. The company’s mid-management curriculum is deemed equivalent to 27 credit hours. The combined total of 50 credits is equivalent to more than one-and-a-half years of college education.
Following the intensive evaluation process, ACE lauded the quality of the curriculum, rigorous trainer certification, new learning management system (LMS), and College Credit Connection Website. The site serves as a one-stop shop that helps employees understand the program’s value, educates them about colleges and college degrees, guides them and the schools through the ACE process, and provides a convenient way to obtain transcripts. When an employee is ready to pursue a college education, he or she obtains a transcript from ACE noting the credit recommendations accumulated via completion of McDonald’s curriculum. ACE transcripts are accepted at more than 1,800 higher education institutions across the U.S. Additionally, McDonald’s has formed partnerships with 15 local and national colleges/universities, and the company continues to grow the network.
McDonald’s is one of only 12 Fortune 500 companies to be awarded college credit recommendations. This means the company can:
- Partner with employees to help them achieve their education goals, which, in turn, makes them better employees, capable of delivering an improved customer experience.
- Validate the strength of its training programs.
- Support its corporate strategy of talent development and its culture of lifelong learning.
- Provide its workforce and brand with an even stronger competitive advantage.
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