Tuition Assistance

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What is Tuition Assistance?

We know that the cost of your education can make it challenging to earn a college degree. That’s why Archways to Opportunity^® offers Tuition Assistance to eligible employees. Tuition Assistance is money to help pay for college courses that are taken at an “approved school” such as a two or four year public or private college or university; business, technical or vocational school; graduate or post-graduate school that is accredited by the Department of Education.

We know that the cost of your education can make it challenging to earn a college degree. That’s why we offer Tuition Assistance to eligible employees. Tuition Assistance is money to help pay for college courses that are taken at an “approved school” such as a two or four year public or private college or university; business, technical or vocational school; graduate or post -graduate school that is accredited by the Department of Education.

Who’s eligible?

McOpCo full-time Store Manager Trainee, Certified Swing Manager, Department Manager, or General Manager

You are eligible for $5,250 in Tuition Assistance if:

You have a performance rating of “significant performance” or better, maintained throughout the course/program.
Notify your Supervisor of your participation

McOpCo restaurant Crew, Floor Supervisor, Shift Manager Trainee, Primary Maintenance, or other part-time employee

You are eligible for $2,500 in Tuition Assistance each year if:

You are employed by McDonald’s for at least 90 cumulative days.
You work an average of 15 hours per week or more.
You have a performance rating of “significant performance” or better, maintained throughout the course/program.

Full-time restaurant manager or staff of a participating Franchise Owner/Operator

You are eligible for $3,000 in Tuition Assistance each year if:

Your Operator participates in the Archways to Opportunity program.
You work a minimum of 30 hours per week for that Franchise Owner/Operator.
You are in good standing as determined by the Franchise Owner/Operator.

Restaurant crew (including maintenance), part-time manager or part-time office staff of a participating Franchise Owner/Operator

You are eligible for $2,500 in Tuition Assistance each year if:

Your Operator participates in the Archways to Opportunity program.
You are employed by the same Franchise Owner/Operator at least 90 cumulative days as of the time of the Tuition Assistance Request application completion.
You work an average of 15 hours per week for that Franchise Owner/Operator.
You are in good standing as determined by the Franchise Owner/Operator.

What should I know about Tuition Assistance?

Tuition Assistance through Archways to Opportunity covers eligible course expenses (tuition and course fees) that are not covered by scholarships or grants.

Example of how this works:

Ron receives financial aid that he must repay. He is eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance to cover eligible course expenses to avoid out of pocket costs.
Ron receives a grant that covers 100% of his tuition. The grant does not need to be repaid. He is not eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance because he has no out of pocket costs for eligible course expenses.
Ron receives a grant that covers 50% of his tuition. The grant does not need to be repaid. However, Ron is eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance to cover the remaining eligible course expenses that he would have to pay out of pocket.

Your session start and end dates entered on your application must be accurate to your school schedule. Failure to enter accurate session dates will result in a delay of award.
Applications can be submitted 45 days before a course start date.

If you attempt to submit prior to 45 days your application will be placed in a pending status. You will need to log back in to resubmit your pending application saved under “action needed” within that 45-day timeframe.

To get tuition assistance, you must meet the eligibility requirements that are pre-verified through McDonalds.

You shall cease being eligible to receive benefits under this program upon the date in which you terminate employment or are discharged from employment.

Once approved you will receive a 2-page Letter of Credit (LOC) via email that you must provide to your school as soon as possible. EdAssist does not send this on your behalf.

A Letter of Credit (LOC) acts as tuition and starts the direct bill process with Bright Horizons, EdAssist. Each LOC is only good for the courses taken within the approved session. If for some reason you do not receive the LOC via email you can access it directly on your EdAssist account. Your LOC is valid for 90 days after the issue date.

Upon submission of the LOC your school will invoice Bright Horizons. After review, a payment will be made via check and mailed directly to the school.

If your school does not participate in direct bill and therefore does not accept the LOC, follow this process. Connect with the EdAssist support team using the Live Chat feature found on the EdAssist home page. The support team will assist you in uploading your itemized bill directly to get your tuition paid.

If you’ve already paid for your courses, you will still submit the LOC to your school. Once your tuition assistance is paid via EdAssist direct bill your school can reimburse your out of pocket payments in acceptance of the check.

After you’ve completed your course, you must upload a transcript showing satisfactory completion of your previously awarded courses.

You can access your approved application in the history section found on your homepage. Follow prompts to add grades/transcripts to the “supporting documentation” section of your approved request.
If you do not provide acceptable grades you will be unable to submit an additional request for tuition assistance. If you have an unsuccessful grade, you will be suspended from receiving additional tuition assistance for the remainder of that benefit year.

If you are a manager, you must submit a transcript showing satisfactory completion of your previously awarded term within 90 days of your course completion date. If you do not submit your documentation, you will be responsible for repayment of tuition assistance awarded and it will be collected through the payroll process.
You have until December 31st each year to submit your application for courses that end in that same year.

Tuition Assistance through Archways to Opportunity covers eligible course expenses (tuition and course fees) that are not covered by scholarships or grants.

Example of how this works:

Ron receives financial aid that he must repay. He is eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance to cover eligible course expenses to avoid out of pocket costs.
Ron receives a grant that covers 100% of his tuition. The grant does not need to be repaid. He is not eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance because he has no out of pocket costs for eligible course expenses.
Ron receives a grant that covers 50% of his tuition. The grant does not need to be repaid. However, Ron is eligible to use Archways Tuition Assistance to cover the remaining eligible course expenses that he would have to pay out of pocket.

Your session start and end dates entered on your application must be accurate to your school schedule. Failure to enter accurate session dates will result in a delay of award.
Applications can be submitted 45 days before a course start date.

If you attempt to submit prior to 45 days your application will be placed in a pending status. You will need to log back in to resubmit your pending application saved under “action needed” within that 45-day timeframe.

To get tuition assistance, your request must be approved by your Franchise Owner/Operator.
You shall cease being eligible to receive benefits under this program upon the date in which you terminate employment or are discharged from employment.
Once approved you will receive a 2-page Letter of Credit (LOC) via email that you must provide to your school as soon as possible. EdAssist does not send this on your behalf.

A Letter of Credit (LOC) acts as tuition and starts the direct bill process with Bright Horizons, EdAssist. Each LOC is only good for the courses taken within the approved session. If for some reason you do not receive the LOC via email you can access it directly on your EdAssist account. Your LOC is valid for 90 days after the issue date.
Upon submission of the LOC your school will invoice Bright Horizons. After review, a payment will be made via check and mailed directly to your school.
If your school does not participate in direct bill and therefore does not accept the LOC, follow this process. Connect with the EdAssist support team using the Live Chat feature found on the EdAssist home page. The support team will assist you in uploading your itemized bill directly to get your tuition paid.
If you’ve already paid for your courses still submit the LOC to your school. Once your tuition assistance is paid via EdAssist direct bill your school can reimburse you out of pocket payments in acceptance of the check.

After you’ve completed your course, you must upload a transcript showing satisfactory completion of your previously awarded courses.

You can access your approved application in the history section found on your homepage. Follow prompts to add grades/transcripts to the “supporting documentation” section of your approved request.
If you do not provide acceptable grades you will be unable to submit an additional request for tuition assistance. If you have an unsuccessful grade, you will be suspended from receiving additional tuition assistance for that benefit year.

You have until December 31st each year to submit your application for courses that end in that same year.

How do I request Tuition Assistance?

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Before you get started…

45 days before your course starts, gather your information, including:

Your personal information, including the last 4 digits of your SSN.
Your employee information: your start date, current role, and average hours worked.
Your restaurant address; you will be able to search this by ZIP code.
Your school and official start and end dates of your upcoming session.

Confirm if you are receiving scholarships or grants that do not need to be repaid.

Attending CTU? Ensure you know your course details and your CTU student I.D.

Your eligible textbook costs and receipts.

Once you have your information ready...

Complete your online request for Tuition Assistance:

Go to the Bright Horizons EdAssist Solutions website: https://mcdmcopco.edassist.com.

New? Create a new account.

Important: If you already have an account make sure you log in to your existing account.
Using the store locator, search for the restaurant address you currently work at.
Complete all registration questions.

Be sure this information is accurate. Inaccurate information can cause request delays.

Last step for account creation, verify the restaurant address selected is correct, click “Continue” to enter your EdAssist homepage.
This will be your tuition assistance “account” for Archways to Opportunity.

Take your time exploring your new account, important messages are available, and you can take advantage of live chat to get personalized assistance in answering any questions you may have.

To submit a tuition assistance application, click on “New Application”.

Important: If you are unable to proceed with your application, you do not meet the eligibility requirements for tuition assistance.
You can verify your employment information supplied by McDonald’s Corporation in your profile. Please reach out to your supervisor if you have any questions about your eligibility details.

Make sure you have the school specific information you gathered and complete all required fields.

Fill in the following: Area of study, employer program, select your education provider (this is your school), and your accurate course start and end dates.

Attending CTU? Click on Tuition Assistance Program at CTU. CTU will auto populate as your provider, and you must enter your student ID.
Enter your course start and end dates. It is critical that you enter this accurately as CTU runs on 5-week terms. You can click on the CTU calendar to confirm official dates of each session.

Next you can view your remaining tuition balance for the benefit year and proceed.

Attending CTU? You must enter in your course information. The amount will auto populate as $0. Final amounts will be adjusted and visible upon direct billing with CTU. Ensure all courses enrolled for are added.

Identify Y/N if you plan to receive grants, scholarships, or discounts. If you select yes (Y), enter the scholarship/grant type and amount.

This information will be verified when your school invoices Bright Horizons EdAssist for payment. Tuition Assistance awards will be paid for eligible tuition and course fees not covered by scholarships or grants.

Click “I Agree” to the Participant, FERPA, and Letter of Credit terms. Next digitally sign your application.

Review all entered information is accurate. You can edit any details before finalizing your application by clicking “Submit Application”. This is your final step to requesting tuition assistance!

To request tuition assistance for textbooks, go to the latest application under the “Actions Needed” section of your homepage.

Click on “Actions” and follow the prompts to enter textbook details & the cost (fees).
Confirm the information entered for books is correct, then click “Save Expense”.
Click “I Agree” to both the participant & FERPA terms, then digitally sign your application again.
You can review all entered information and edit any details before finalizing your request for textbooks by clicking “Submit Application”. This is your final step in your textbook application.
Next you will need to submit supporting documentation (receipts for textbooks). Click on “Supporting Documentation” and upload your documents. Acceptable document formats are pdf, jpg, jpeg, and png. File size limit is 3 MB.
Awards for textbooks are sent via payroll as reimbursement for your out-of-pocket expense.

What happens after I submit my application?

Bright Horizons EdAssist Solutions will review your application to ensure it meets policy compliance.
Upon approval a Letter of Credit (LOC) will be emailed to you automatically. If you did not receive the email, it will be available on your account homepage under “Action Needed”.

Important: You must provide the LOC to your school as soon as possible to start the direct bill process. EdAssist does not send this on your behalf.
Upon receipt of the LOC, you can begin classes and your school will invoice Bright Horizons. This typically happens after add drop week as many students change their course schedules.

Bright Horizons will review the invoice against the program policy and issue an award for eligible courses and tuition fees not covered by grants or scholarship.

A check is cut and mailed directly to your school on your behalf. You will receive an email confirmation when payment is officially made with the total amount of the award.

If your school does not participate in direct bill and therefore does not accept the LOC, connect with the EdAssist support team using the Live Chat feature found on the EdAssist home page. The support team will help you upload your itemized tuition bill to get your tuition paid.

What happens after I complete my courses?

Log back into your Bright Horizons Account homepage and upload your grades/transcripts.

You can access your approved application by clicking the “History tab” found on the top of your homepage. Follow the prompts to add your transcript/grades to the “supporting documentation” section of your approved request.

You must provide satisfactory completion of courses in order to start another application.

Questions about grade requirements? Review the policy document located in the “Using You Benefits Section”.

Once your grades have been submitted and reviewed as passing, your application will be considered complete. This will unlock your next application.

If you have an unsuccessful grade, you will be suspended from receiving additional tuition assistance for the remainder of the benefit year.

Still unsure of where your request is at in the process? Log in to your account and review the status on your homepage.

You can also get support with live chat right away, by submitting a ticket via the support services tab (?) on your homepage, or calling Bright Horizons customer care at 844-358-1622 which operates Monday – Friday 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. EST.