McDonald’s Australia has today launched the national roll out of ‘Archways to Opportunity’, an innovative new program offering more than 20,000 Macca’s employees nationwide the opportunity to transform workplace skills into university credits with some of Australia’s leading universities, including the º£½ÇÉäÇø (UC).
Archways to Opportunity has launched at all McDonald’s restaurants, nationwide, including the more than 20 Macca’s in operation across the ACT.
Here’s how it works. McDonald’s Crew Coaches and Managers can now earn up to eight verified and transferrable microcredentials, simply by completing on-the-job learning, face-to-face training and workplace experience in areas like communication, problem-solving and leadership.
They can then take these microcredentials to any university nationwide and apply for recognition of prior learning that could give them credit toward a university degree in courses including Business, Commerce, Management, HR, Technology and IT.
“From counting burgers to accounting prowess, partnerships between the higher education sector and corporates, like McDonalds, are giving more adults access to tertiary education, contributing to our productivity, and shaping Australia’s future,” said The Hon Bill Shorten, Vice-Chancellor and President of the º£½ÇÉäÇø.
“At UC, we meet our students where they want to go and provide pathways to higher education, through microcredentials or courses like our Bachelor of Business with its various specialisations that open doors to advancing careers.”
“By recognising the life skills, knowledge and capabilities of McDonalds’ employees, UC will be giving them the leg up they need to head down the path of lifelong learning whether in accounting, human resource management, international business, or marketing because their experience counts, and their future lies beyond the archways of potential.”
Each micro-credential counts for up to one subject credit in an undergraduate degree. Stacked together, they can also ladder up to direct entry into a Master of Business Administration.
Excitingly, we have partnered with some of Australia’s leading universities, to provide a seamless pathway for our people towards university credits. This includes the º£½ÇÉäÇø, as well as the University of Technology Sydney, the new Adelaide University, Curtin University, Charles Darwin University, the University of Tasmania, James Cook University, Torrens University Australia, the University of New England, Swinburne University and specialist training provider, the William Angliss Institute.
In some cases, this offers savings of more than $20,000 in fees and could shave up to a third off the total study time required to complete a bachelor’s degree.
McDonald's is the first organisation in Australia to have its internal training and on-the-job experience -certified and recognised by multiple universities nationwide. This means thousands of Macca’s employees now have the opportunity to earn university recognised microcredentials on the job, with no additional study required.
The nationwide rollout follows a successful pilot earlier this year with Capability.Co, Torrens University and the University of South Australia.
McDonald’s Australia’s CEO, Joe Chiczewski, said, “Macca’s has always been famous for our exceptional skills and training programs, and we proudly invest millions of dollars every year into helping our people grow their skills and capabilities.
“Archways to Opportunity is the next evolution of that commitment and shows our people that the skills and training they build at Macca’s are real, valuable, and recognised beyond our restaurants. That’s not just exciting. It’s world class.
“To be able to work, earn a wage and have your training and experience count towards tertiary education is an incredible opportunity, a powerful career advantage, and an investment we are proud to lead at Macca’s”.
Kate Britt, CEO, Capability.Co said, “At Capability.Co, we want to ensure that everyone has open access to quality education and fulfilling careers, no matter their background. Archways to Opportunity exemplifies what’s possible when we recognise the real skills people develop every day at work. Together with McDonald’s, we’re opening the door to lifelong learning, career mobility, and greater equity in education.”
Zaakirah Khan, Restaurant Manager at McDonald’s, is excited to receive the micro-credentials, in recognition of her prior learning through McDonald’s training programs.
“I’d always planned to go to university” said Zaakirah, “but never imagined I’d have the support of McDonald’s in creating that opportunity. Now I’m able to take that next step, and it’s incredible to know that everything I’ve learned at Macca’s is giving me a head start. I can also continue to fit my shifts at Macca’s around study, which is a bonus!”