The Perks Associated With Earning An Associate’s Degree
May 19th, 2012Are you graduating from high school and looking for a way to increase your earning potential? Maybe you already have graduated from high school and want to continue your education, but aren’t quite sure what major best suits you and your career goals. In either case, an Associate’s degree can be a great way to meet your goals.
A two-year degree is usually awarded to students who have completed about 20 college courses. This is about half the number that is usually required for a Bachelor’s degree. One of the advantages of an Associate’s degree is that a student doesn’t have to follow any particular course of study, as he or she would have to when earning a 4 year degree.
Of course, there are still the basic requirements of English, science, and math that are meant to prepare students with the skills that they will need to join the workforce and become successful workers. The choice of courses beyond these required are much more flexible, though.
If a student knows what field of employment he or she wishes to enter, an Associate’s degree can be focused on classes that help prepare for the given type of career. If he or she is planning on continuing education beyond this level, it is often to the student’s advantage to choose a variety of elective courses, allowing him or her to explore different career paths and discover what truly interests and excites him or her.
For those looking to enter the workforce after the completion of 2 year degree, it can prove to be a valuable and profitable tool. Not only will this degree look good on your resume, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that workers with this degree earned on average $128 more a week than those with only a high school diploma. In these cases, the Associate’s degree is generally referred to as an occupationally focused degree.
For students who are planning to continue their education, the Associate’s degree is often referred to as a transfer degree. This is because the degree prepares students with the basics of college coursework and allows them to determine what type of Bachelor’s degree program they may want to choose to transfer into. And, because 2 year degrees are often offered at community colleges, the monetary savings can be substantial as compared to completing an entire course of study at a 4-year university or college.
A two-year degree of either type also offers students more flexibility in how they attend school as well, according to the U.S. Department of Education. They found that nearly 10 percent of students earning an Associate’s degree did so via distance learning. This can allow students to complete their degrees from home, without the additional expenses of travel to and from campus or housing and meal plans that are often associated with 4-year colleges and universities.