Can You Earn an Associate's Degree in 2 Years?
A 2-year associate's degree program can train individuals for high-demand, high-growth jobs in a fast-paced economy. 2-year associate's degree graduates can increase their earnings, enter a new career field and jump-start a bachelor's degree program.
Why a 2-Year Associate's Degree?
Why would you go back to school for an associate's degree versus a bachelor's? Cost, time, commitment and results are the primary reasons to go for an associate's degree, whether you are planning to obtain a bachelor's degree or not. Nearly all the courses in an associate's degree are applicable towards a bachelor's degree program. Most, if not all, courses offered for an associate's degree cost less in tuition than similar courses offered on a university level. Finally, a two-year commitment is easier for most individuals than a four-year one.
When you receive your associate's degree, whether it was the long-term or short-term goal, you feel a measure of success. That success will then help drive you to jumpstart your bachelor's degree program even as you take advantage of the career opportunities the associate's degree provides.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, an individual's education will directly influence their income. A person with a high school diploma will make more than a person without it. A person with an associate's degree will make more than a person with a high school diploma. Income increases are directly proportional to education level.
Specializing Your Degree
An associate's degree does not have to be a basic, core course only degree program. Most colleges online and traditional are offering associate degree specialization such as an associate's degree in accounting or an associate's degree in business administration. Associate's degrees in these fields are excellent gateways to energizing career and education options.
An associate's degree in accounting can prepare a student for an entry-level position as an accounting assistant, bookkeeper and management trainee while an associate's degree in business administration graduate can find work as a manager, assistant manager, supervisor and other administrative type positions. Both an associate's degree in accounting and business administration graduates can also seek to complete their bachelor's degrees in complimentary or similar fields with the majority of their credit hours transferring to the upper level school.
Earn an Online Associate's Degree
The average associate's degree takes about 24 months to complete 60 to 61 credit hours of study. An online associate's degree can reduce that to 18 months depending on the program. Online associate's degrees offer today's students more flexibility. According to the U.S. Department of Education, more than nine percent of students seeking an associate's degree are online or distance learning.
Online degrees are not just for working adults, but also for students just graduating high school. Taking classes from home eliminates traditional costs for housing and transportation while offering the comparable educational material and experience.
High-Growth Gatekeeper
Earning an associate's degree online or off is a gateway to new opportunities professionally and personally. For adult's going back to school, the core focus courses are a great way to be reintroduced to education while for fresh high school graduates, the demand and structure of an online associate's degree is a firm grounding in raising expectations.
Completing an associate's degree in two years is possible. Once that goal is accomplished, these successes can open doors to new opportunities, new challenges and perhaps even a new degree.
