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Would you like fries with that McDegree?

Posted in General, Marketing January 28th, 2008 by gabay

In an unprecedented move to bolster the workforce, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will today (28 January) announce that McDonald’s, Network Rail and Flybe will become the first three companies to have the authority to grant Level 3 status qualifications (equal to GCSE, A Levels or even specialised diplomas).
 
Some academics are already complaining that the diplomas will not be as academically thorough as traditional ones. According to reports, four out of 10 university admissions tutors said they will refuse students who had taken the new diplomas that will come into effect next autumn.
 
From this month, McDonald’s will be piloting their basic shifts manager course. In summer FlyBe will offer courses covering the work of cabin crews, engineers and call centre staff, some of which will reach Level 4 - degree level.

Network Rail will initially offer track engineers courses up to A-level or Diploma standard.
 
Whilst any boost to our country’s education system is welcomed (especially one combining practical ‘real-life’ qualifications with theory) from a branding prospective, I can’t help feeling  a bit like a burger without a filling about this… Consumers may start believing that yet another core tenets of our society - this time, education- is under threat from becoming a commercial sponsorship opportunity.
 
With falling high value perceptions of their image, McDonald’s have recently re-assessed all aspects of their brand positioning, including re-positioning themselves as a healthy food option café bar to compete with the likes of Starbucks.
 
In USA, McDonald’s sponsors primary school progress reports; rewarding free ‘Happy Meals’ to children attaining good grades and class attendance records.
 
Also in Oakbrook, Illinois USA, McDonald’s runs its own ‘Hamburger University’ recognised by the American Council on Education.  Additionally it has ‘Hamburger University’ campuses in Sydney, Munich, London, Tokyo, Hong Kong and Brazil.
 
In the UK, advertisers annually spend around £300 million targeting the classroom. In just one case, mint brand, ‘Mentos’ offers schools free sweets, a teaching pack and a chance to win £2,000 of science equipment.
 
With the new increased competition in the academic market for students, perhaps one day soon we’ll see the likes of ‘Oxbridge’ advertising a choice of either snack-size or even super-size diplomas; both with a free T-shirt branding their Alumni - now there’s food for thought.

Jonathan Gabay - www.brandforensics.co.uk