The Associates Degree

The Associates Degree is the first or entry level degree, if you will, that a person receives upon completing 70-80 college level courses. An Associate's Degree takes only two years to complete at most traditional and online colleges. Many people choose an Associate's degree because it's quicker and costs much less than a Bachelor's. There are many scholarship awards available to help with funding an Associate's degree and many can be found through searching the World Wide Web.

One benefit of the Associate's degree is that it is easy to use to get a Bachelor's degree. To save money, many students earn a two-year degree at an affordable community college, or earn an online degree. Then they'll transfer to a more prestigious four-year university and apply their Associate's credits for a Bachelor's degree.

There are several classifications of an associate's degree. The most basic examples are: the Associate of Arts Degree, Associate of Applied Science Degree, Associate of Science Degree, and Occupational Degree. All of these are designed to allow graduates to transfer their credits over to a 4-year degree if they so desire, however certain types of degrees only allow one to transfer some or part of their credits over.

Generally, the majors for associate's degrees are slightly more limited than typical four-year degrees. Most common degrees of this type are in the fields of medical assistant, paralegal, computer-related fields, data processing, and various forms of public service. They are perfect for people who would like to get certification quicker than those seeking out a four-year degree.

Associate's degrees also keep you out of the workforce for a shorter amount of time. For non-traditional students who work full-time or take care of young children, time is a crucial issue. You can earn an Associate's degree at an online college in the same amount of time as at a traditional school, but you'll have more flexibility to work and care for children while you do it. For many adults, online education is the better choice.

The problem with an Associate's degree is that in the workforce, you'll be competing with other applicants who have Bachelor's degrees. Most people who hold Associate's degrees are interested in white-collar jobs in science and technology, business, government, or some other office or professional setting-the same jobs Bachelor's degree holders apply for.

Did You Know?

In the 2006–07 academic year, 66 percent of the 4,160 2-year and 4-year Title IV degree-granting postsecondary institutions in the nation offered college-level distance education courses.

Nurses comprise the largest single component of hospital staff, are the primary providers of hospital patient care, and deliver most of the nation's long-term care.

329,000 is the increase in the nation’s high school-age population between 2003 and 2004. More than two-thirds of the states experienced an increase in this group over that period, led by California (78,000), Florida (33,000), and New York (24,000).

In 1992, the National Adult Literacy Survey found the following distribution of adults, age 16 and over, in the prose literacy scale: 25% of adults were in Level 1 (lowest level of proficiency); 25-28% in Level 2; 33% in Level 3; 18-21% in Levels 4 and 5 (highest levels of proficiency).