Bellevue University Partnerships: Expanding Access, Advancing Outcomes, and Connecting Education to Opportunity
At Bellevue University, partnerships are not an add-on. They are a core strategy that the University uses to expand access, improve student outcomes, and connect education directly to career pathways. Through collaborations with employers, community colleges, education providers, and global institutions, Bellevue creates flexible, innovative pathways designed to help students and organizations succeed together.
Key Facts
• Partnerships span employers, community colleges, education providers, and global institutions.
• Employer partnerships maximize tuition assistance, the delivery of in-demand learning programs, and customized learning pathways.
• Collaborations with educational organizations like StraighterLine offer accelerated learning pathways and credential opportunities.
• Partnerships with ed-tech platforms like Guild expand access to education benefits for corporations’ employee populations.
• Community college partnerships support seamless transfer pathways and degree completion.
• Global partnerships extend Bellevue’s reach to students and institutions in countries including China and India.
A Partnership Model Built Around Learner Success
At Bellevue University, partnerships are intentionally designed to meet learners where they are, whether they are working professionals, transfer students, or globally based learners seeking access to higher education in the United States. Rather than operating in isolation, Bellevue integrates partnerships into its academic model, creating connected pathways that reduce barriers and accelerate progress toward degrees and credentials.
This approach is rooted in Bellevue’s long-standing mission to provide career-focused, accessible education. By working directly with organizations across industry sectors, the University aligns its academic programs with real-world workforce needs. This ensures that what students learn is immediately relevant and applicable. At Bellevue, partnerships are not just about enrollment growth; they are about outcomes: helping students complete their education, advance in their careers, achieve their goals, and contribute to their organizations.
Employer Partnerships That Drive Workforce Outcomes
Bellevue University’s employer partnerships are a cornerstone of its approach to higher education. In fact, Bellevue formed its first official employer partnership in 1999 with Omaha-based Boys Town.
Today, through partnerships with more than 150 organizations across industries ranging from retail to financial services to healthcare and more, the University provides employees with streamlined access to degree programs, certificates, and short-form learning aligned to business needs.
The Bellevue University partnership model benefits both employees and their families with direct entry points into Bellevue programs, often supported by employer tuition assistance and customized enrollment pathways. These partnerships are designed to do more than provide a direct financial benefit. They are structured to support employee growth, retention, and internal mobility.
In addition, Bellevue works with major workforce education intermediaries such as Guild to scale access to education for large employee populations. Through these relationships, thousands of Fortune 100 and Fortune 500 employees across the country can pursue fully funded or employer-supported degrees, reinforcing Bellevue’s role as a trusted partner in workforce development.
It’s (Ignite Nebraska) been one of the most collaborative and innovative approaches to really working with a corporation to develop curriculum that allows them to actually hire the students right away, knowing that they both had the trial by fire in the university and trial by fire in the workplace and succeeded on both ends.
Expanding Pathways Through Community College Partnerships
Bellevue University has a long history of partnering with community colleges to create clear, efficient transfer pathways for students. These partnerships, which number more than 50, are essential to expanding access—helping students build on credits they have already earned and continue their education without starting over.
Through collaborative program design and articulation agreements, Bellevue ensures that transfer students experience a seamless transition and maintain momentum toward degree completion. This approach reflects a broader commitment to both high access and high performance. Bellevue supports students as they start their higher education journey and continues working with them to help them complete it successfully.
Community college partnerships also create opportunities for joint innovation, allowing institutions to collaborate on curriculum design, student support strategies, and pathways that align education with career opportunities. By working together, Bellevue and its partners are building more connected and student-centered higher education ecosystems.
Innovative Education Partnerships for Flexible Learning
In addition to traditional academic partnerships, Bellevue University works with innovative education providers and workforce development nonprofits to deliver flexible, accelerated learning opportunities. Collaborations with organizations like StraighterLine enable students to begin their education through self-paced, online courses that can transfer into degree programs—expanding access and reducing time to completion. And Bellevue currently serves as the educational partner for Ignited Nebraska, a nonprofit that upskills and supports Nebraskans as they build skills for a modern economy.
Similarly, partnerships with organizations such as ReUp Education focus on re-engaging learners who have previously stopped out of college, providing pathways for them to return and complete their degrees. These partnerships reflect Bellevue’s commitment to meeting learners at every stage of their journey, not just traditional students entering college for the first time.
Together, these models support a more flexible and inclusive approach to higher education, one that recognizes that today’s learners need multiple entry points, formats, and pathways to succeed.
Global Partnerships Expanding Access Worldwide
Bellevue University’s partnership strategy extends beyond the United States, connecting the institution to learners and organizations around the world. Through international collaborations, including partnerships in countries such as China and India, Bellevue expands access to U.S.-based education while supporting global workforce development.
These partnerships create opportunities for cultural exchange, academic collaboration, and shared innovation, while providing international students with access to career-focused programs and credentials recognized in the global marketplace.
Bellevue’s diverse student body includes learners from 24 different countries, ensuring that international partnership students will be welcomed both on campus and online.
Our focus is clear: we’re here to serve Bellevue University and our employer partners today and into the future. Strong partnerships drive both growth and impact.
Founded in 1966, Bellevue University is a non-profit university with more than 70,000 graduates worldwide. The University is a recognized national leader in preparing students for lifelong success with career-relevant knowledge and skills, while making college affordable. Routinely ranked among the nation’s top military and accessible institutions, the University serves residential students at its main campus in Bellevue, Nebraska, and everywhere online with more than 85 degree programs uniquely designed for working adults. The University is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission (hlcommission.org.).