Stretching Tuition Benefits: Unlocking ROI Through Strategic Education Partnerships

Posted on: December 15, 2025

You offer tuition reimbursement—but are your employees using it? And are they getting the most value from it?

While many employees express interest in going back to school, only a small percentage take advantage of the benefits their employers offer.

The disconnect is clear: traditional tuition programs often fall short of their potential. That’s where strategic education partnerships come in.

The Opportunity: Education Partnerships

BenefitEd’s strategic education partnerships help employers stretch their tuition benefit dollars further—while making education more accessible for employees.

Through partnerships with top universities like Purdue Global, Bellevue University, UMass Global, and Lynn University, employers gain access to:

  • Pre-negotiated tuition discounts (up to 30%).
  • Debt-free degree options.
  • Dedicated microsites and employee support.

And, through a new collaboration with AllCampus, BenefitEd expands its reach even further. AllCampus partners with dozens of top-ranked institutions—including Boston University, Vanderbilt University, and Johns Hopkins University—to offer:

  • 250+ debt-free degree programs.
  • Over 500 online programs.
  • Robust administrative support for working learners.

These partnerships remove barriers to enrollment and completion, helping employees find flexible, career-aligned programs—often at a fraction of the cost.

Why It Matters: Benefits for Employers

Education partnerships aren’t just a perk—they’re a strategic investment. Here’s how they deliver ROI:

  • Higher Participation and Retention: According to the Lumina Foundation, employees who participate in tuition assistance programs are 8% more likely to stay with their employer. At Discover Financial Services, participants were 21% more likely to be promoted, and at Cigna, the program yielded a 129% ROI, largely due to reduced turnover.
  • Recruitment Advantage: A Gallup report found that 45% of Millennials would change jobs for tuition reimbursement benefits, making it a powerful tool for attracting top talent.
  • Cost Efficiency: According to Homebase,the Small Business Administration estimates hiring a new employee can cost 1.2 to 1.4 times their salary. Factor in training and lost productivity, and you’ll see it’s much more efficient to upskill an existing employee than hire a new one. Tuition reimbursement programs help employers build from within while taking advantage of tax deductions up to $5,250 per employee per year.
  • Skill Development and Internal Mobility: LinkedIn Learning’s 2022 Skills Advantage Report found that companies with strong internal mobility retain employees for an average of 5.4 years, nearly double the retention rate of companies that struggle with it. Employees with access to learning are 3.5 times more likely to believe their company supports their career goals.

Why It Matters: Benefits for Employees

For employees, education partnerships mean:

  • Lower Costs: Tuition discounts and debt-free options make education more affordable.
  • Simplified Access: Microsites and support teams help employees navigate enrollment and reimbursement.
  • Career Advancement: According to InStride, 84% of employees say tuition assistance helped them prepare for the future of work.

These programs don’t just help employees earn degrees—they help them grow, stay, and thrive.

How to Use It

Employers can activate any or all of BenefitEd’s strategic education partnerships by:

  1. Linking to the Education Partnerships page from their internal benefits portal.
  2. Promoting their available programs to employees through onboarding, newsletters, and manager toolkits.
  3. Using microsites and BenefitEd’s Education Partners employees page to guide employees to eligible schools and programs.
  4. Partnering with BenefitEd to track usage, outcomes, and ROI.

Let’s Partner Together for You—and Your Employees

Tuition reimbursement doesn’t have to be expensive or underused. With the right partnerships, it becomes a powerful tool for retention, engagement, and workforce development.

Contact BenefitEd today. Let’s partner to stretch your tuition benefit dollars—and empower your employees to reach their full potential.