Next Mile – Education for your team and strategic growth for your business

Supporting DSPs to offer education to retain their employees and advance their careers.

Be among the first DSPs to offer free education to your employees!

Get started

The program

Impact

How it works

Amazon is partnering with InStride to empower you to offer Next Mile, an education and tuition assistance program, to your employees.

Upfront tuition coverage

1,700+ education options

Curated learning collections

The program

Up to $5,250 per eligible employee each year—DSPs will receive reimbursement from Amazon to cover these costs.

Undergraduate and graduate degrees or career-boosting skills courses to choose from — all 100% online from top-tier universities and providers.

A curated collection with business and entrepreneurship-focused courses to prepare employees for career advancement.

Your employees get

50%

50% longer retention of participating employees

93%

93% of employees believe company is committed to employee growth and success

20% of applicants cite education programs as the top reason for choosing companies to apply to

Results for your business

FAQs

Attract talent

Remain an employer of choice by offering a competitive education benefit.

Retain your employees

Minimize turnover costs with long term education options.

Foster career growth

Offer growth into business-critical roles with career education paths.

Break down barriers by providing equal access and opportunity to life-changing education

Enhance diversity, equity and inclusion

Impact for your community

Improve the quality of life in your community and allow DAs to stay, earn and thrive by increasing their lifetime earning potential through education

Build more prosperous communities

Give DAs a chance to learn and grow their careers without having to incur insurmountable debt

Reduce the student debt load

Opt in to launch your turn-key education program

How it works

Through Amazon’s partnership with InStride, you’ll get everything you need to successfully launch and engage your team in the program including:

Access to the InStride learner platform where employees get personalized education recommendations and 1:1 live coaching in just a few clicks.

A dedicated support team to assist you from pre-launch through employee participation and graduations.

A comprehensive DSP Owner’s toolkit, regularly refreshed promotional material and quarterly owners’ check-ins.

Owner reports with actionable analytics to track impact.

Get started in 3 easy steps

January:

Your DAs get access to life-changing education

December:

Complete your InStride agreement and pay $100 annual fee

Now:

Submit your information here if you haven’t already

20%

Now:

Submit your information here if you haven’t already.

Get started in 3 easy steps

December:

Opt into the InStride program terms and pay the $100 annual fee.

January:

Your employees have access to life-changing education.

Employees will have access to the InStride learner platform where they can sign up to participate, see personalized education recommendations, get 1:1 support and other helpful resources.

You’ll get materials to help you promote Next Mile to your employees—provided by InStride.

What is the estimated time commitment and budget for me to operate this program?

FAQs

What is the estimated time commitment and budget for me to operate this program?

Amazon will then reimburse costs for eligible employees to your company accordingly, up to $5,250 per employee per year.

Your DSP will be invoiced for the courses taken by your employees.

How does billing work?

Give DAs a chance to learn and grow their careers without having to incur insurmountable debt.

Reduce the student debt load

Enhance your community by helping your team increase their lifetime earning potential through education.

Strengthen your community

Break down barriers by providing equal access and opportunity to life-changing education.

Enhance diversity, equity and inclusion

Impact for your community

How funding works

Eligible employees enroll in courses of their choosing through the InStride education Portal.

Once enrolled, InStride will aggregate all tuition payments and your DSP will be invoiced for the courses taken.

Each DSP is responsible for paying InStride for tuition costs for all employees, with Amazon reimbursing costs for eligible employees, up to $5,250 per employee per year.

We're hosting several information sessions soon. Register for one here.

Fill out this form if you haven't done so already. In December, you’ll receive an email letting you know that you can opt in to this value-added service from the Next Mile website and pay your $100 annual fee to InStride.

I want to launch this program. How do I get started?

If you have questions in the meantime, you can email AmazonSupport@InStride.com.

In December, you’ll receive an email letting you know that you can opt in from the DSP Owners website and pay your $100 annual fee.

Provide your information and answer a few questions if you haven’t done so yet.

How soon can I launch Next Mile at my DSP?

You will be able to review and opt into the program terms in December. The program will be ready to launch to your employees in January 2023.

You will be responsible for paying a $100 annual subscription fee to InStride. Amazon is paying annual implementation fees.

Once your DAs begin taking courses, you will be charged for their tuition. Amazon will then reimburse you to cover the cost of education up to $5,250 per eligible DA per calendar year.

If your DAs choose to pursue education that goes above the $5,250 limit, they will be responsible for the difference or you can choose to cover the extra cost on their behalf.

Next Mile differs from a traditional tuition reimbursement program because participating employees will not need to pay tuition out of pocket. Here’s how it works for your DSP:

If DAs wish to take courses and exceed $5,250 in a given year, they will be responsible for any cost over that amount.

Amazon eligibility criteria states that employees must work for your DSP at least 3 days a week, however you may choose to cover the cost for employees who do not meet this requirement.

Each DSP can select the duration of employment* for an employee to be eligible for participation (i.e. first day of employment, 30 days, 90 days, 120 days). *Amazon recommends a 90-day eligibility period. You will be responsible for program costs for your employees before 90 days of employment.

Which DAs are eligible to receive this benefit?

This program differs from a traditional tuition reimbursement program because DAs will not need to pay tuition out of pocket. Here’s how it works for your DSP:

Arizona State University

InStride offers online online degree programs, high school diplomas, professional courses and certificates from the following providers:

What schools or academic providers are available to employees through Next Mile?

Arizona State University CareerCatalyst

Central State University

City University of New York School of Professional Studies

ed2go

Franklin University

Google Certifications

FlexCredit Powered by Franklin University

FlexCredit Powered by Indiana Wesleyan University

FlexCredit Powered by Western Texas College

Kingsborough Community College

Palm Beach State College

Smart Horizons Career Online High School

Beginning in January 2023, there will be an exclusive learner platform for your employees to find details about the program including how finances work, available learning options, and how to get enrolled in the degree program, professional certificate or course of their choice.

Amazon is proud to partner with InStride to offer online degree programs, high school diplomas, professional courses and certificates from the following providers:

How do my employees enroll in courses through Next Mile?

Yes—the InStride learner platform includes access to personal education advisors for live, 1:1 support and answers to their questions.

Amazon is proud to partner with InStride to offer online degree programs, high school diplomas, professional courses and certificates from the following providers:

Will there be support to help my employee select a course, degree program or career path?

Once you launch Next Mile at your DSP, your employees will have access to the InStride learner platform where they’ll be able to create an account, get information about available learning options, and find helpful resources including personal education advisors.

Amazon is proud to partner with InStride to offer online degree programs, high school diplomas, professional courses and certificates from the following providers:

Where can my employee go if they have a question?

Yes! You’re encouraged to leverage this program to help you stand out against the competition in your community. For other InStride partners, as many as 1 in 5 job applicants citing the company’s education program as their number one reason for applying to work there.

Amazon is proud to partner with InStride to offer online degree programs, high school diplomas, professional courses and certificates from the following providers:

Can I use this in my hiring advertising?

InStride will supply you with flyers and other materials for you to use in recruiting.

Once you’ve opted in to offer Next Mile at your DSP, InStride will receive DA information from Amazon. Using that information, your DA will simply create an account on the InStride learner platform—this is when their eligibility will be determined and communicated to them.

How will my employee know if they are eligible to enroll?

Strengthening your community by offering education to help employees stay, earn and thrive.

Reducing the student debt load for your employees.

Enhancing diversity, equity and inclusion within your community and break down barriers to education by providing equal access.

Boosting career growth for your employees and increase their long term earning potential through education.

Attracting top talent. Use this program in your recruitment marketing to stand out from the competition. For other InStride partners, as many as 1 in 5 job applicants cite the company’s education program as their number one reason for applying to work there.

Improved retention. When offering a program like this, companies see as much as 50% longer retention of program participants as compared to non-participating employees.

There are both business and social impact benefits to offering a program like this at your DSP. These include:

What are the benefits of offering this program to my employees?

Amazon partners with value-added service providers to ensure DSPs have access to best-in-class programs to benefit their businesses and their communities. This program is intended to be a tool for you to help reduce turnover, enhance employee satisfaction, accelerate recruiting efforts and strengthen your local communities.

Why is this program being offered?

You can email AmazonSupport@instride.com with any questions.

My question isn’t listed here. Who can I contact?

Connect with InStride’s workforce education experts to learn how you can generate a greater ROI for the same spend or less than your existing tuition reimbursement program.

Foster career growth

Offer growth into business-critical roles with career education paths.

Retain your employees

Minimize turnover costs with long term education options.

Attract talent

Remain an employer of choice by offering a competitive education benefit.

Give your team a chance to learn and grow their careers without having to incur insurmountable debt.

Reduce the student debt load

Enhance your community by helping your team increase their lifetime earning potential through education.

Strengthen your community

Break down barriers by providing equal access and opportunity to life-changing education.

Enhance diversity, equity and inclusion

Get started

The program

Impact

How it works

FAQs

Get started

Amazon has partnered with InStride to make Next Mile as simple to operate as possible. Once you opt in to this value-added service, Amazon will automatically share the necessary information with InStride to get it launched for you.

The University of Memphis Global

The University of Virginia School of Continuing and Professional Studies

Universidad Tecmilenio

University of Wisconsin - Madison

Voxy

The University of Memphis Global

The University of Virginia School of Continuing and Professional Studies

Universidad Tecmilenio

University of Wisconsin - Madison

Voxy

Simplilearn

Promotional tools you can use now

Invite interested employees to register for the information session.

Consider adding this language to your hiring ads to attract more talent ahead of the busy season.

Download this “coming soon” flyer to share with your employees.

(Note: this session is intended for employees who are considering going back to school. DSP owners should sign up for a DSP webinar here.)

DSP employees can choose from 1,700+ learning options

Top-tier academic network

Sample learning options include:

Graphic Information Technology (BAS)

Software Engineering (BS)

Cybersecurity Certificate

Speed Spanish Certificate

Google UX Design Professional Certificate

Google Project Management Certificate

Business (BS)

Bachelors of Business Administration (BBA) - Supply Chain Management (SCM)

Finance (BBA)

Consumer Behavior and Marketplace Studies (BS)

High School Diploma + Commercial Driving Certificate

Psychology (BA)

Developing Your Business Plan

English Language Learning

Human Systems Engineering (BS)

Associate of Science in Business Administration

Supervision & Management Entrepreneurship (BAS)

AWS Developer Associate Certificate

Personal Finance

Undergraduate Information Technology Certificate

Computer Science (AS & BS)

Sustainability (BS)

Interdisciplinary Studies (BIS)

Certified Supply Chain Professional

Marketing Strategy (Professional Course)

College Writing (Undergraduate Course)

And many more!

You will be responsible for any tuition costs for employees that do not align with Amazon’s reimbursement eligibility: 90 days of tenure and working at least 3 days per week.

If employees wish to take courses and exceed $5,250 in a given year, they will be responsible for any cost over that amount.

Yes, DSP owners are welcome to pursue education via Next Mile.

Am I eligible to participate as a DSP owner?

Yes. Download this flyer to help you talk to your employees about the program ahead of our launch in January.

I want to start promoting this program now. Do you have tools for me to do that?

At this time, the program is only available to DSPs in the United States. We are working to expand to other countries in the future.

Is this program available to DSPs in Canada?

The employee will be able to finish the in-progress course but will be ineligible to take any courses through the Next Mile program going forward.

What if an employee leaves my DSP when they are in the middle of taking a course?

Each academic institution may set their own grade requirement minimums, however, Next Mile participants will not be required to share their grades in order to participate.

Are there any minimum grade requirements to participate?

No.

Is there a limit to the number of employees at my DSP who can participate?

At this time, Next Mile covers only in-network learning options and schools. Employees have the option to transfer to an in-network school and can work with an admissions representative to help them through the process of transferring credits earned. Tuition reimbursement for local schools will come at a later phase of this program, be on the lookout for more information post the January 2023 launch.

I have employees who are already enrolled in a local school. Can they receive tuition coverage through Next Mile toward their current program?

Consider adding this language to your hiring ads to attract more talent ahead of the busy season.

Invite interested employees to register for the information session.

You will be responsible for any tuition costs for employees that do not align with Amazon’s reimbursement eligibility: 90 days of tenure and working at least 3 days per week.

If employees wish to take courses and exceed $5,250 in a given year, they will be responsible for any cost over that amount.

Yes, DSP owners are welcome to pursue education via Next Mile.

Am I eligible to participate as a DSP owner?

Yes. Download this flyer to help you talk to your employees about the program ahead of our launch in January.

I want to start promoting this program now. Do you have tools for me to do that?

At this time, the program is only available to DSPs in the United States. We are working to expand to other countries in the future.

Is this program available to DSPs in Canada?

The employee will be able to finish the in-progress course but will be ineligible to take any courses through the Next Mile program going forward.

What if an employee leaves my DSP when they are in the middle of taking a course?

Each academic institution may set their own grade requirement minimums, however, Next Mile participants will not be required to share their grades in order to participate.

Are there any minimum grade requirements to participate?

No.

Is there a limit to the number of employees at my DSP who can participate?

I have employees who are already enrolled in a local school. Can they receive tuition coverage through Next Mile toward their current program?

Want to learn more?

Unable to join a live session? No problem! Register anyway and we’ll have the recording sent straight to your inbox.

Thursday, October 20 | 8 am PT

Friday, October 28 | 11 am PT

Wednesday, November 2 | 3 pm PT