Tips for Sending Employees Back to School

Today it seems that everyone is going back to school. This is a trend that is felt strongest among older adults that are either approaching the midpoint of their careers or that approaching retirement and are looking for their next career opportunity. If you operate a business and you want to keep your talent satisfied with their jobs and with your company, then consider sending your top employees back to school to learn some new tricks.

Hiatus for School

There are several options that you have for allowing your star employees and even your up and coming employees to go back to school. One option is to develop a hiatus policy for personal development. This policy will allow employees that have tenure to take time off without penalty to go back to school to finish a degree or to get a new degree. This is not paid time off, but the employee can come back to your company to their old position and grade once their education is complete.

Company Scholarships

If you want to encourage your employees to develop their professional skills then you can offer them a company scholarship instead of time off. This scholarship can have a set dollar limit or it can be a set percentage of a certificate or degree program. For example, you can agree to contribute $1,000 towards a semester or certificate program or you can agree to pay 50 percent of your employee's tuition.

Flexible Scheduling

Another way to support your employees going back to school is to offer them a flexible scheduling option. This will enable them to take classes during the work day without having to quit their job or go on hiatus. The employee can simply adjust their schedule so that they get in their work hours around their classes.

Promote Distance Education

Today many state and private universities are offering online classes and degree programs. These are a great option for the working adult, and a great option to promote to your employees. If you want your employees to develop their professional skills then consider inviting a representative from a distance degree program to talk with your employees about what it will take to complete an online degree.

Policy Changes

If you are promoting that your employees go back to school or to enhance their professional skills and you are also investing company assets in their development, then you need to make changes to your policies. The changes will need to first outline the options that are available, then they need to outline the rules of using the company assets and finally they need to spell out the obligations that the employee will need to fulfill after the degree is completed. For example, if you offer a scholarship for your employees then you will want to create a policy rule that requires the employee to stay with your company for X number of years after the degree has been earned. You may also want to include provisions for refunding money that is spent on a degree program that is not completed or that the employee fails to complete successfully.