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Updated US fast-food giant McDonald's is hoping to offer PhDs after receiving approval to award its own nationally recognised qualifications in Britain, the company's "chief people officer" said.
Speaking to the Financial Times, David Fairhurst said the company's new power to award qualifications made it "a university in its own right", and added that the company wanted to award qualifications equivalent to university degrees.
"One day, I'd love to see us doing a PhD - I definitely think we should go as far as we can," he said.
He cautioned, however, that the company wanted to perfect its current training regimen, which includes courses in shift management that are equivalent in level to A-levels or high school courses, before putting together a post-graduate qualification.
McDonald's was one of nine employers or employer groups last year that received the power to award qualifications, which Britain wants to encourage so that more workers will have recognised certificates to increase their employability.
The company has long sought to challenge the perception that it only creates low-level, poorly-paid "McJobs".
In the not so distant future we will be blessed with a world wide McDonald's university for the preparation of scientifically created Big Macs. Let's hope that those with McPhD's will also research the reduction of fat content in fast foods in order to reduce the cholesterol levels in young and old Mac addicts.
