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The Frances Perkins Program provides women of non-traditional College age the opportunity to study toward a first undergraduate Bachelor's degree at Mount Holyoke on a full - or part-time basis. Recognizing that the acquisition of a College degree is mutually beneficial for the College and its employees, Mount Holyoke provides the opportunity for interested and qualified employees, with the permission of their department head, to enter the Frances Perkins Program on a part-time basis while continuing to work for the College at their regular salary. Employee Frances Perkins degree candidates may take up to two courses (8 credits) per semester on a tuition remission basis.
To qualify for this benefit, you must be a full-time (at least 35 hours per week for the academic or fiscal year) employee of the College with at least one year in your current position or a part-time (20 hours or more per week for the academic or fiscal year) employee with at least two years in your current position and working on a first undergraduate degree.
An employee who wishes to apply for admission to the Frances Perkins Program on this basis must first receive the approval of her department head. Because classes occur during most employees' normal work day, the employee and the department head must reach agreement regarding making up lost work time and insuring that assigned tasks are completed before the process can proceed. An application for benefit eligibility, available from the Human Resources Department, must be completed in order to begin the process.
Once benefit eligibility has been determined and the supervisor's approval has been received, the employee may apply for admission to the Frances Perkins Program. Employee applications will be judged on the same basis as other, outside applications: no special consideration will be given to College employees. And, like other applicants, they may be expected to submit evidence of recent academic achievement.
If admitted to the Frances Perkins Program, a participating employee may take up to two courses (8 credits) per semester. The Frances Perkins Program policy requires a minimum two-course per semester load and it is expected that employees participating in this program will comply with that standard. If, as the result of job requirements or other pressures, an employee wishes to take only one course in a given semester, an exception must be received from the Frances Perkins Steering Committee. On-campus housing is not available.
A course load that exceeds 8 credits has a significant impact on an employee's work schedule and in the rare instance that this is required, the employee must provide Human Resources with written authorization from their supervisor.
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