They called it free college but students had to front a lot of the money," said Rachel Fishman, an education policy analyst at New America, a public policy think tank. In a press release, Starbucks referred to the new program as a "benefit for Starbucks partners."
Experts say that in general it's a great deal for students, with an important caveat.
"The main aspect that's still problematic is they're working while going to school," said Mark Kantrowitz, publisher of EdVisors.com, a website about paying for college.