Another Name For Associates Degree

What Is an Associate Degree? Requirements, Costs, and More

Written past Coursera • Updated on Aug 8, 2022

Acquaintance degrees open paths to new job opportunities and can be used to transfer into bachelor's degree programs.

[Featured Image] Associate degree students gather to discuss classwork.

An associate degree is a two-yr college caste that yous can obtain from a community college, inferior college, online academy, or some 4-year institutions in the US. In terms of education, an associate degree falls between a high school diploma and a bachelor's degree.

Students go on to exercise different things with their acquaintance degree: some transfer into a available's degree program, while others choose to become straight into the workforce. You can also earn your associate degree subsequently working for several years; it can exist the offset step to a new career or help you advance in your current 1.

Read on to empathise central facts most earning your associate caste, and the important factors—similar educational and professional goals—you should consider as yous decide whether it's the right choice for your hereafter.

Associate degrees: Key facts

Earning your acquaintance caste is typically more affordable and takes less time than earning your bachelor'south degree. It can also help y'all forge new career paths in professional person fields such as medicine, engineering, and computer scientific discipline. Let's review the basics of what it costs—and what it takes—to go an acquaintance caste.

Admissions requirements

Admissions requirements vary from college to higher, but you'll generally need to run into the post-obit conditions in order to proceeds entry to an associate degree plan:

Be 18 years of age by the fourth dimension y'all begin your first day of class
Have a high school diploma, or have passed a General Didactics Development test (GED) or an equivalent test
Meet GPA requirements established by some community colleges

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While tuition levels vary between colleges and programs, the average tuition for one year in an associate degree plan is $3,800 in 2021, according to the College Board [1]. That'south for public in-district schools—pregnant you're a resident in the district the acquaintance degree program is located.

Compare that with the average tuition for a year in a bachelor'south caste program, which is $10,740 for public in-state schools, $27,560 for public out-of-state schools, and $38,070 for private nonprofit schools.

Financial aid

Students enrolled in an associate degree plan might be eligible for federal financial aid, as long every bit the institution is accredited. Y'all can submit a FAFSA application to see if you qualify to receive federal aid or federal student loans. For the 2021-2022 schoolhouse year, 56 percent of customs higher students received assist, while 33 percent received federal grants [ii].

How long it takes

It mostly takes full-time students about two years earn an acquaintance degree, though it can accept longer for office-time students. If you prefer to work while earning your associate degree, you'll be in good company. More than four million community college students attended office-time in 2021 (compared to 2.two meg total-time attendees) and 72 percent of them worked [ii].

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Types of acquaintance degrees

The most common types of associate degrees are:

Associate of Arts (AA): Associate programs focused on business, humanities, arts, or social sciences are often called Acquaintance of Arts degrees. An AA may be a stepping rock to transfer to a bachelor'south degree.

Acquaintance of Science (AS): Associate programs in a field related to science or math are often called Acquaintance of Science degrees. Along with an AA, the AS is typically recommended past schools for students who want to transfer to 4-year programs.

Associate of Applied Scientific discipline (AAS): Acquaintance programs that focus on technical and vocational skills are oftentimes called Associate of Applied Science programs. These programs are by and large designed to prepare students for a specific occupation or work in a specific field subsequently graduation. Fields tin include computer scientific discipline technology, hospitality direction, paralegal studies, law enforcement, welding, among many others. Although it's less common to employ an AAS degree to transfer into a bachelor'due south program, some four-year degree programs have begun accepting them for transfers.

What tin you lot do with an associate degree?

One time you earn your associate degree, you have ii options to consider. You can extend your education and apply to a available's degree programme, or you tin can pursue jobs in the medical, engineering, computer science, or legal fields, among many others.

Transfer to a bachelor's degree program

If yous're interested in continuing your education, you can apply to bachelor'due south caste programs later you earn your associate degree, and begin completing courses in your declared major.

In fact, a number of students earn their acquaintance degree at a lower-price community college before transferring to a four-twelvemonth college or university to stop their bachelor's. Remember that for in-state students, the average almanac price of attending a community college was $3,800 in 2021, compared to $10,740 for a public 4-twelvemonth school, which tin corporeality to a pregnant savings over two years or more [1].

Earning your associate degree before deciding to pursue your available'due south also gives you lot time to:

Build upwards report skills: If y'all've been out of school for a while and want to brush up on your study skills, or your high schoolhouse GPA didn't quite run across admission requirements for a four-year degree, an associate program can give y'all a boost. Not all community colleges take a GPA requirement for admissions.
Get more time to explore: If you're not certain what you desire to study, attention a customs higher for general studies courses tin can give y'all time to explore courses that might interest you lot before you fully commit to getting a bachelor's degree in a field of study.
Enjoy added flexibility: Many community colleges proceed working people in mind and offer courses at night or on weekends. If you're working or accept family to take care of, starting off with an associate degree could bring you the flexibility you demand.

If you're hoping to beginning a caste, and factors like affordability and flexibility are of import, online bachelor's degrees may be another pick. Online bachelor'southward degrees are bachelor in a wide range of topics, like computer scientific discipline or psychology.

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Pursue a career

You can explore new career opportunities with your associate caste—frequently with college salaries than a high school diploma will yield. Associate degree holders in the United States earn a median income of $938 per week compared to $781 for high school graduates [3].

Here is a brief snapshot of some of the jobs you tin can typically offset with an associate degree. They're expected to abound at least as fast as average, according to the The states Bureau of Labor Statistics [4], and the median salaries in the Us are at least $40,000.

Task	Median salary range
Calculator network back up specialist	$60,000-80,000
Spider web developer	$60,000-80,000
Physical therapist assistant	$forty,000-60,000
Dental hygienist	$threescore,000-80,000
Occupational therapy banana	$60,000-fourscore,000
Radiation therapist	$80,000 and over
MRI technologist	$60,000-eighty,000
Civil applied science technician	$forty,000-sixty,000
Ecology technology technologist	$40,000-threescore,000
Geological and hydrologic technician	$40,000-60,000
Agricultural and food science technician	$xl,000-threescore,000
Mechanical engineering technician	$40,000-60,000
Legal assistant	$40,000-lx,000

Keep in heed that employers for some positions—like registered nurses—might prefer available's degree holders but may also hire associate caste graduates.

Read more: How to Go Your First Chore: A Guide

Differences between acquaintance and bachelor'due south degrees

There are benefits to pursuing any kind of higher education, be it an associate degree or bachelor's degree. Holding an bookish degree can lead to more career opportunities and college salaries. If yous're unsure which degree is right for you, here are important differences to compare:

	Acquaintance degree	Bachelor's degree
Length of time	2 years	iv years
Boilerplate almanac tuition	$three,800 (public in-district schools)	$x,740 (public in-land schools), $27,560 (public out-of-state schools), $38,070 (individual nonprofit schools)
Credit requirements	60 credits	120 credits
Common enrollment requirements	Loftier schoolhouse diploma or GED	High school diploma or GED, letters of recommendation, GPA, standardized test scores
Campus experience	Students unremarkably commute from off campus. Sports teams, clubs, and extracurricular opportunities are available.	Students tin alive on campus or off campus. Sports teams, clubs, and extracurricular opportunities are bachelor.
Fiscal aid bachelor	Aye	Yes
Median weekly earnings in 2019 for graduates	$938 (some higher or Acquaintance degree)	$1,305

Data on average annual tuition and weekly earnings comes from the College Board and the Bureau of Labor Statistics respectively [1, 3].

Which is meliorate: Associate degree or bachelor's degree?

The best degree volition be the one that helps you achieve your goals—either personal, educational, or professional. While there are a number of careers you lot can pursue with an associate degree, y'all may find more opportunities with a bachelor's caste. But if time is a major cistron, and so an associate degree may exist the best choice for your immediate needs. Ultimately, it'due south important to review your situation—your financial resource, your schedule, your objectives—to determine which is the best degree for you.

If you're interested in earning an academic degree to gain entry to a new career path or advance your career in a chosen field, it tin assistance to look at job postings and encounter the minimum education required. Understanding the standards your manufacture expects may aid determine which caste yous eventually earn.

Associate degree alternatives

If your goals don't crave an academic degree, there are other options that may offer some flexibility.

Professional certificates

Professional certificates are qualifications you lot can earn by completing courses or exams to demonstrate your power in a field. They often crave no previous feel in a subject field, and tin can take anywhere from several months to a few years to finish. You tin can get a professional certificate in a variety of fields, including It support, data analysis, figurer programming, and marketing.

Certificate programs can be office-fourth dimension or full-time, and may be offered online and in person. Because they tend to take less time and fiscal resources than degrees, professional certificates can be a solid option for those who know what specific skills they want to develop, and prioritize flexibility. If you're set up to explore, scan some online certificate options.

Trade or vocational school

Merchandise schools, also known equally vocational or technical schools, railroad train students to enter professions that require a sure set of skills. They're characterized past their emphasis on hands-on preparation.

Graduates continue to work as electricians, dental hygienists, chefs, structure managers, and machine mechanics, among many other professions. Merchandise schools typically take ii years or less to complete, though some professions may require additional apprenticeships afterward the program. They can be a expert choice if you lot take a specific job in listen and don't need or want to pursue an bookish degree to secure employment in that profession. Some characteristics to consider when researching merchandise schools include: whether the program is accredited, has a track record of job placement, and makes sense for you lot financially.

Bootcamps

Bootcamps—intensive programs that are designed to chop-chop equip y'all with a new skill set—can be a fast way to enter a new field or advance in your current one. Bootcamps typically take a few months to complete. Though reckoner coding bootcamps are popular, you can enroll in digital marketing, cybersecurity, or UX/UI design bootcamps, too. Bootcamps can be online or in person, full-time or office-time.

Frequently asked questions (FAQ)

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What Is a Available's Degree?
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Article sources

ane. Higher Board. "Trends in College Pricing and Educatee Aid 2021, https://enquiry.collegeboard.org/pdf/trends-college-pricing-student-help-2021.pdf." Accessed August 8, 2022.

2. American Clan of Customs Colleges. "AACC Fast Facts 2022, https://www.aacc.nche.edu/2022/02/28/42888/." Accessed August 8, 2022.

3. US Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Education Pays, The median salaries in the US are at least $xl,000." Accessed August eight, 2022.

iv. US Bureau of Labor Statistics. "Occupation Finder, https://www.bls.gov/ooh/occupation-finder." Accessed August 8, 2022.

five. Higher Board. "Career: Registered Nurses, https://bigfuture.collegeboard.org/careers/health-diagnosis-handling-registered-nurses." Accessed November Baronial 8, 2022.

Written by Coursera • Updated on Aug 8, 2022

This content has been made bachelor for informational purposes only. Learners are advised to carry additional research to ensure that courses and other credentials pursued meet their personal, professional, and financial goals.