Arizona State Will Give Uber Drivers in 8 Cities Free Tuition in Its Online Program

Arizona State University will join with Uber, the ride-sharing service, to provide fully funded tuition in its online program to drivers in eight cities, the university announced on Thursday.

The partnership is among a growing number of tuition-free alliances between universities and corporations. Google, for example, together with 25 community colleges, is offering an IT-support professional certificate. FedEx offers free tuition at the University of Memphis for the company’s local employees.

Arizona State is no stranger to corporate partnerships. In 2014 the university joined with Starbucks to offer discounted tuition to company employees. The original partnership was praised by the U.S. secretary of education at the time, Arne Duncan. Others saw the partnership as a way to reach new groups of middle-class students.

Arizona State’s corporate partnerships help it subsidize the cost of distance education. Though colleges don’t know exactly how much it costs to recruit each new student, big companies, like Starbucks and Uber, can help reach different and larger groups of potential students.

“We are committed to pioneering new ways to increase access to higher education and enable more people to achieve their potential, personally and professionally,” said Michael Crow, Arizona State’s president. “We are excited by this partnership with Uber and the role it can play in improving the lives not only of Uber drivers but also their family members.”

Drivers who have recorded at least 3,000 miles or achieved a specified status are qualified for the program, which allows participants to earn a bachelor’s degree or a certificate online.

Unlike the Starbucks partnership, Uber drivers can choose to give the tuition benefits to a “sibling, a significant other, a domestic partner, son or daughter, or even parent,” said Philip Regier, Arizona State’s dean for educational initiatives and chief executive officer of the university’s innovations arm, EdPlus.

About 10,000 drivers are eligible for the program, according to Arizona State and Uber. The university plans to accept about 1,000 during its pilot year, “virtually all” of whom will be adults, Regier said.

Adults who work full-time or part-time jobs have high retention rates at the university, he said. That was also found to be true among the university’s Starbucks students.

Each student will be provided a financial-aid package and a scholarship. The remaining cost of tuition will be covered by Uber. Students will pay for books, laptops, and other technology services.

The pilot program will be offered in Chicago, Denver, New Jersey, New Orleans, Orlando, Phoenix, Seattle, and Tampa. The university plans to expand the program within a year and accept an estimated 2,500 more students, Regier said.

Follow Cailin Crowe on Twitter at @cailincrowe, or email her at cailin.crowe@chronicle.com.