Going back to school doesn’t have to empty out your wallet. If you’re currently working but ready to go back to school, you might be able to get your employer to cough up the dough through employer tuition reimbursement programs.

“At least half of all American workers get some sort of assistance paying for college from their jobs. Most employers will pay only for courses that they consider to be work related. But quite a few employers (covering at least 15 percent of American workers) will pay for almost any course,” U.S. News and World Report reported last year.

The U.S. government advises potential students to always check with their employers and, in some cases, a parent’s employer, when considering pursuing an undergraduate or graduate education. The Federal Student Aid, an office of the Department of Education, says that an employer should be one of the first places a person weighing further education should go to when determining how to foot the bill.

Before heading to the boss, prepare your request for tuition reimbursement. Follow the steps below, and you’ll be ready for the conversation:

1. Investigate what types of classes or degrees you are interested in pursuing and how these lessons might tie into your current job. Make sure your employer knows how your new education will benefit the company.
2. Consider whether you are interested in part-time classes in the evenings or weekends or if you would be taking time off work to complete a degree.
3. Seek out your employer’s handbook and look to see if it mentions a tuition reimbursement program. Companies range from offering no assistance to a capped amount to full tuition reimbursement if you stick around. Some employers will pitch in for the purchase of books, too.

If your company does not have a tuition reimbursement program, you should write your own proposal outlining and take a few minutes to sit down with your boss to explain. Remember to emphasize how the classes you want to take would benefit your employer.

Additionally, turnover at companies that offer tuition assistance is lower, “and that result seems consistent with the view that workers stay with firms longer in order to make full use of tuition assistance plans,” according to a paper on employer tuition reimbursement from The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania.

An advanced education and degree are beneficial for both employers and employees. If you’re interested in making a change and an online degree is key to your goals, take the initiative and approach your employer.

For more information:
Your Employer Can Help Pay for Your Degree by U.S.News & World Report