\u201cI would really like to make it to the C-suite \u2014 be a CEO,\u201d said Boudreaux, 37, who works at the medical group\u2019s Philadelphia and Montgomery County<\/a> sites. <\/p>\n So, without quitting her job, Boudreaux pursued her undergraduate degree in health administration with the University of Phoenix. She graduated in 2023, and now she\u2019s on track to get her master\u2019s in business in November. She\u2019s done all her coursework while working full-time. <\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t easy, Boudreaux said. <\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re just moving constantly,\u201d she said. \u201cWhen I look back, I\u2019m like, I don\u2019t know how I did it.\u201d <\/p>\n It helped that Jefferson provided some financial support for Boudreaux\u2019s education. <\/p>\n More than 40% of employers offer this benefit, according to Alex Alonso, chief knowledge officer at SHRM, a human resources association. That number has waned a bit in recent years, but some large local employers still do so.<\/p>\n They include Comcast, which offers tuition reimbursement as an employee benefit<\/a> and works with Drexel University<\/a> to shape several master\u2019s programs for tech workers. Another is Aramark, which covers up to the full cost<\/a> of tuition for eligible hourly employees, and tuition assistance for salaried employees. And Philadelphia\u2019s city workers get tuition discounts at more than a dozen local colleges<\/a>. <\/p>\n The majority of Philadelphia\u2019s workforce haven\u2019t graduated from college,<\/a> though tens of thousands of residents have taken college classes without earning<\/a> a degree. <\/p>\n For many, completing a four-year degree would still prove beneficial, said Sean Vereen, president and CEO of nonprofit Heights Philadelphia, which connects young people with education and career opportunities. <\/p>\n \u201cThe college degree is not the only way to get to economic success, \u2026 [but] there is a connection between your ability to have stronger credentials and your ability to move economically,\u201d Vereen said. <\/p>\n Why workplaces offer tuition assistance<\/p>\n Federal tax incentives have encouraged employers to assist with education costs, said Alonso of SHRM. The benefit also helps companies compete for good hires, he noted.<\/p>\n Most commonly, Alonso said, employers offer up to $5,250 per employee per year. That\u2019s the maximum they can give toward education costs without the employee paying taxes on it. Workers are often required to show that the education is related to their job or career, so they \u201ccan actually bring back what they learn to their workplace,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n Sometimes getting additional education, including short-term microcredentials, are prerequisite to a promotion, said Phil Brooks, a vice president at nonprofit Graduate Philadelphia, which supports adult students. <\/p>\n Hurdles for worker-students <\/p>\n Getting a degree while working full-time can mean early mornings, later nights, giving up weekend time, or even using lunch breaks to squeeze in school work. <\/p>\n Other challenges can include transportation for in-person programs or access to a computer and reliable internet connection, says Brooks. Students who owe money to a school where they were previously enrolled might also be held back from transferring or finishing their degree.<\/p>\n Graduate Philadelphia sometimes helps students negotiate with schools to decrease that amount owed, \u201cliterally removing this barrier as much as we can,\u201d Brooks said. <\/p>\n Aspiring hospital executive Boudreaux\u2019s advice? Don\u2019t quit. <\/p>\n \u201cSlow progress is still progress,\u201d she said. \u201cA lot of times, when we start off on a journey, we see the entire staircase, but not realizing that it takes one step at a time to get to the top.\u201d<\/p>\n Expert tips for pursuing a degree while working: <\/p>\n \tFigure out what education benefits your employer offers. \u2014 Phil Brooks, Graduate Philadelphia Getting the promotion<\/p>\n When Nicole Henderson, 38, graduated high school, going to college right away wasn\u2019t an option.<\/p>\n \u201cIt just didn\u2019t make sense for our family,\u201d she said. \u201cWe just couldn\u2019t afford it.\u201d<\/p>\n Years later, while working at a trading firm, she started pursuing a bachelor\u2019s in accounting. But she put it on hold after a semester when she learned her employer, who encouraged her to go back to school, wouldn\u2019t cover her tuition.<\/p>\n Five years ago, while searching for work as an executive assistant, she saw a role open up at the Children\u2019s Hospital of Philadelphia that didn\u2019t require a bachelor\u2019s degree. She got the job and soon felt the urge to continue advancing her career. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m now at this huge organization with all these opportunities,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cI was like, oh, man, eventually I\u2019m going to have to have this bachelor\u2019s degree.\u201d<\/p>\n In 2023, she started working toward that undergraduate degree again. Her colleagues at CHOP were supportive, and she was given flexibility to tune into classes from work sometimes, or work remotely on the days she had a lot of studying to do. CHOP also reimburses a portion of her tuition and has a student loan repayment program. Without that financial support, Henderson says she wouldn\u2019t have pursued the degree. <\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/circle_outline_footer_light_theme.png\"\/)
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\n\tMeet with your employer\u2019s HR team and your managers about how your degree will bring value and innovation to your workplace. \u2014 Alex Alonso, SHRM
\n\tNot all credentials or degrees may pay off in the same way, and some institutions are creating programs for revenue. Ask for advice and assess which program is best suited to help you, not just cost you. \u2014 Sean Vereen, Heights Philadelphia<\/p>\n