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Associate Degree vs. Bachelor Degree

Is it wiser to pursue an Associate Degree program(s) rather than Bachelor Degree?

  • Yes--Associate Degree

    Votes: 1 6.3%
  • No--Bachelor Degree

    Votes: 7 43.8%
  • Other

    Votes: 8 50.0%

  • Total voters
    16
Having the AA/AS degree (or a trade school certificate) opens more job opportunities for you to reduce the need for massive loans in two ways: 1) you can then earn enough to save money for your further education and 2) the employer may offer tuition reimbursement assistance. I also agree that you are apt to make better decisions a bit later in life.

@ttwtt

I agree with your post completely--thanks for your input.
 
The two plus two option (two years at community college, two years at the university), is great financially
as long as the university has a plan that accepts the credits. ( you do not want to pay for a class twice.)
beyond that, the benefit to picking up a associates degree is that it locks in your credits.
without a degree your earned credits will disappear in 7 years, which means on a slow Bachelor path,
your first year credits could start to drop off before your graduation audit.
The associates is also a good backup plan, Say a person wants to be an electrical engineer,
An associates in electronics, or electrical power distribution, could complement the EE degree.
If for events beyond their control they could not complete the EE degree, they still have good career chances.

@longview

Yes, exactly.
 
What school, which degree, all flow from what you want to do, not the other way around.
Some people really like school and academia, and want to just keep learning about a particular field, research, etc. Advanced degrees can be good for them.

So many of us put off figuring out what we want to do with our life, because it terrifies us. But I can assure you that it's more terrifying to be 40 and realize you never did what you wanted to do, and your best days are behind you.

So find your passions, and try to find one that can be done while providing you with the sort of lifestyle you envision enjoying. If that fails, then get your degree (it's almost irrelevant which one or associates vs bachelors), and find a job (includes management) that inspires you, and learn their business and goals and pursue them as though they were your own. If you're lost in the world of careers, but you have a good mentor and/or co-workers, boss, etc., then you will still likely do just fine as long as you don't try to coast in your twenties :)
 
Is it wiser to pursue an Associate Degree program(s) rather than Bachelor Degree?

it is smart to get an education....period!

now if you start in community college with a AS in a decent field, that will open a LOT of doors. It is also MUCH cheaper, you can usually live at home, and arent weighing yourself down with unnecessary debt to payoff later in life. It will always depend on the classes, and the degree, but i hired many community college grads....and they never went back...just continued with their career.
 
That is why I intend to get Associates degrees in Engineering, Physics, Chemistry, & possibly CS next year, as it will only take 1 year plus summer courses at a very limited cost (since there is significant overlap in the subjects) and coupled with a Mathematics BS, will credential me for all kinds of solid paying jobs that a Math BS alone really does fails to. From there, I have a 'safety net' to fall back on and will not have to be concerned to take out a sizeable loan/investment when going to Graduate School the following year.

Consider, in order to get these Associates at this point (considering the Math BS), would require only:

Engineering: 4 classes
Chemistry: 2 classes
Physics: 1 class
Computer Science: 3 classes

Total cost: less than $3,000
Qualifies one for a variety of jobs in the $50,000-$60,000 range in jobs that are in increasing demand. That is quite a compelling input-output ratio (in my view)

I honestly do not think that 4 A.S. degrees will help you. It looks kinda weird. Now if you had a PhD in Math, a B.S in chemistry, minor in physics/computer science. That would be impressive.
 
What school, which degree, all flow from what you want to do, not the other way around.
Some people really like school and academia, and want to just keep learning about a particular field, research, etc. Advanced degrees can be good for them.

So many of us put off figuring out what we want to do with our life, because it terrifies us. But I can assure you that it's more terrifying to be 40 and realize you never did what you wanted to do, and your best days are behind you.

So find your passions, and try to find one that can be done while providing you with the sort of lifestyle you envision enjoying. If that fails, then get your degree (it's almost irrelevant which one or associates vs bachelors), and find a job (includes management) that inspires you, and learn their business and goals and pursue them as though they were your own. If you're lost in the world of careers, but you have a good mentor and/or co-workers, boss, etc., then you will still likely do just fine as long as you don't try to coast in your twenties :)

Mach I'm coasting right now and I don't want too, I'm not going anywhere/not moving up. So I'm moving on from this tech career and going into a masters program next year. It is a little scary, but I'm still in my late 20s, so it's that same scenario you are talking about. I don't want to be 40 before I try this. When I'm 40 I want to be the top in the field. I may stick to academia, but was never "book smart," so we'll see what happens this time around.
 
Note: Entry-level Engineering positions with a Bachelors average $60,000. Compare that to some Associate degree programs; Dental Hygienist is over $70,000, Registered Nurse (RN) $60,000-65,000, Engineering Technician-$50,000-60,000, Radiology Technician-$50,000-$55,000, Software Developer/Engineer-$60,000, ect. ect.

Dental hygienists dont make 70k, they make the equivalent of 70k per hour, RN is a **** job literally, and along with dental hygienist, engineering tech and radiology tech have little to no career path. As for software developer its the opposite of the dental hygienist they make 60k but they work so many hours they get paid like they make 40k or less

Entry level engineering position is just that ,entry level. People quickly move beyond that and the median salary is much higher than the rest.
 
Dental hygienists dont make 70k, they make the equivalent of 70k per hour, RN is a **** job literally, and along with dental hygienist, engineering tech and radiology tech have little to no career path. As for software developer its the opposite of the dental hygienist they make 60k but they work so many hours they get paid like they make 40k or less

(A) The average salary of Dental Hygienist is in fact $70,000-75,000 per year. Also, you can look up 'job satisfaction', it ranks very well

(B) RN--I wouldn't want to do the job, though $60,000-65,000 per year is a Hell of a lot different than working at Pizza Hut

(C) Engineering Tech & Radiology have direct degree to job correspondence--hence, a career path. They are 2 year degrees one can earn for $7500 or less total, job satisfaction ratings very high, and pay as much entry level Engineering jobs

(D) You seem to the miss the point--the Associates can either be used a solid income indefinitely or as a stepping-stone & safety-net toward more advanced degrees/positions (as I and others have discussed)
 
I honestly do not think that 4 A.S. degrees will help you. It looks kinda weird. Now if you had a PhD in Math, a B.S in chemistry, minor in physics/computer science. That would be impressive.

You are coming from the exact perspective this Thread is challenging--and other members have had solid thoughts about as well.

There are two games at work:

(A) Financial Security

(B) Desired Career/Personal Interest

Now, as previously discussed by myself and others, having a safety-net of practical Associate degrees to fall back on which provides access into solid jobs, allows one the freedom to take risks toward the fields they are truly interested in. Conversely, if one jumps straight into a Bachelors after High School, takes out a $50,000-100,000+ in student loans, toward a degree that may or may not even lead to a Middle-Class level job/profession, then they have effectively made themselves an Indentured Servant while still a "baby", just starting life.
 
You are coming from the exact perspective this Thread is challenging--and other members have had solid thoughts about as well.

There are two games at work:

(A) Financial Security

(B) Desired Career/Personal Interest

Now, as previously discussed by myself and others, having a safety-net of practical Associate degrees to fall back on which provides access into solid jobs, allows one the freedom to take risks toward the fields they are truly interested in. Conversely, if one jumps straight into a Bachelors after High School, takes out a $50,000-100,000+ in student loans, toward a degree that may or may not even lead to a Middle-Class level job/profession, then they have effectively made themselves an Indentured Servant while still a "baby", just starting life.

I think it is more than just a fall back, Some of the best Engineers I have known were technicians or electricians
before they became engineers. I think it adds depth to their perspective, in how they look at problems.
 
I think it is more than just a fall back, Some of the best Engineers I have known were technicians or electricians
before they became engineers. I think it adds depth to their perspective, in how they look at problems.

@Longview

Yes, exactly--I agree. In fact, it is very common for people to begin as Technicians and advance into Engineers. Note, this is why I stated the Associates is an excellent "stepping-stone"

Rather, it is a "fall-back" in the sense that another member submitted--i.e. If one gets an Associates in Electronic Engineering Tech., then later decides to shoot for the Bachelors in EE, but doesn't quite make it through, then they still have a good job to go back to. However, if they went straight into the Bachelors without the Associates prior, they would be in quite a bad situation as they are left with all the College debt and working at Pizza Hut to try and pay it off. It is truly a very big difference practically, although it doesn't not necessarily require anymore work--just wiser planning.
 
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Completely depends on what you want to do with your life. If you plan on working for yourself there may be much better uses of your time than sitting in class.but if you want to get a good job working for a big company then the Bachelors will probably open the most doors initially.

There is no one correct answer to the question.
 
Completely depends on what you want to do with your life. If you plan on working for yourself there may be much better uses of your time than sitting in class.but if you want to get a good job working for a big company then the Bachelors will probably open the most doors initially.

There is no one correct answer to the question.
While your statement is true, if I were advising a young person, my advice would be to get the Bachelors degree.
My Kids are a decade out of college, but their 2+2 Bachelors degrees cost me about $20 K each.
I just looked up the prices, and it looks like a student living at home, could likely get a Bachelors degree for about $26k now.
Paying for my kids college from my (the parent's) perspective, was that my kids started their careers without large debts,
and the cost spread over 4 years was not much different than a new car.
I know which one will last longer, and have a better rate of return.
 
While your statement is true, if I were advising a young person, my advice would be to get the Bachelors degree.
My Kids are a decade out of college, but their 2+2 Bachelors degrees cost me about $20 K each.
I just looked up the prices, and it looks like a student living at home, could likely get a Bachelors degree for about $26k now.
Paying for my kids college from my (the parent's) perspective, was that my kids started their careers without large debts,
and the cost spread over 4 years was not much different than a new car.
I know which one will last longer, and have a better rate of return.

I have had many an argument about this with my wife and my mother. I have two young boys and when they ask me is they have to go to college my answer will be “it depends”. When my wife and mother heard that they ganged up on me. It is one of the few things that they agree on. That and that I look better with a goatee. :)

But we all have very different experiences. My mother is a successful CPA who busted her butt as a single mother to get through college. My wife grew up in a remote Cambodian village and had to drop out of school in 5th grade to get a job and help support the family. I have about 100 college credits but no degree. They are probably expired now. My college education hasn’t affected a single dollar of my earning potential. I own a very successful company I built from the ground up using nothing I learned in college. I had fun in college but for me it probably wasn’t the most efficient use of my time.

I am convinced that the best way to become financially independent is to work for yourself. It is not for everybody, but it also isn’t as hard as many people think. Too many people don’t try it, not because it doesn’t appeal to them, but because it is scary and goes against the general wisdom of graduate high school, get a colllege degree, get an entree level job and then work your way up the chain while accumulating a 401K so you can retire by the time you are 70. I don’t want my kids to feel that is the only path they have to follow.
 
@Lursa

Consider, my local Community College costs only $1,500 per semester, and there are about 15 or so Associates Degrees (2 year programs) which will qualify a person for $40,000-$70,000 jobs--that is one hell of an input-output ratio compared to the 'traditional'/conformist advice given to the kids. Also, the credits apply equally in all areas, so once one gets an Associates Degree in one area, it is much easier/shorter route to get another in a related area. Then, a young adult could build up several such degrees while still very young (i.e. low twenties) at which point it would become nearly inconceivable they would not always have a solid paying job to fall back on for the rest of their lives--all without paying the absurd 4 year cost directly out of High School (btw, it is generally not '4 years' anymore, but often well more than 4). Furthermore, the A.S. degrees set up if they ever did want to pursue more advanced degrees, then they have a good chunk of the B.A./B.S. completed already without the first half cost; then, they could make that decision when they are closer to mid twenties range and actually able to think clearly about making such a significant life decision (of taking out a lot of money in loans for a B.A./B.S. and possibly higher i.e. M.A./M.S., PhD).


Applicant #1: "Hi, I have an A.S. degree and I'd like to come work your company."
Applicant #2: "Hi, I have an B.S. degree and I'd like to come work your company."

Applicant #1: "Sir, we're sorry that your french fires were under-salted. Here's a free order of fires to make up for it and I will be making proper fry-salting part of tomorrow morning's pre-shift meeting."
 
I have had many an argument about this with my wife and my mother. I have two young boys and when they ask me is they have to go to college my answer will be “it depends”. When my wife and mother heard that they ganged up on me. It is one of the few things that they agree on. That and that I look better with a goatee. :)

But we all have very different experiences. My mother is a successful CPA who busted her butt as a single mother to get through college. My wife grew up in a remote Cambodian village and had to drop out of school in 5th grade to get a job and help support the family. I have about 100 college credits but no degree. They are probably expired now. My college education hasn’t affected a single dollar of my earning potential. I own a very successful company I built from the ground up using nothing I learned in college. I had fun in college but for me it probably wasn’t the most efficient use of my time.

I am convinced that the best way to become financially independent is to work for yourself. It is not for everybody, but it also isn’t as hard as many people think. Too many people don’t try it, not because it doesn’t appeal to them, but because it is scary and goes against the general wisdom of graduate high school, get a colllege degree, get an entree level job and then work your way up the chain while accumulating a 401K so you can retire by the time you are 70. I don’t want my kids to feel that is the only path they have to follow.

I can appreciate that point of view, I have several artists in my family, who make good livings doing art
but the idea raising a family, I felt like the risks of self employment were too great.
I think of a college degree is simply a way to get in the door, once in a company, you have to make yourself
a resource and not a commodity.
 
Mach I'm coasting right now and I don't want too, I'm not going anywhere/not moving up. So I'm moving on from this tech career and going into a masters program next year. It is a little scary, but I'm still in my late 20s, so it's that same scenario you are talking about. I don't want to be 40 before I try this. When I'm 40 I want to be the top in the field. I may stick to academia, but was never "book smart," so we'll see what happens this time around.

I hear ya. That you're actively asking/doing is awesome, I was clueless and got lucky in following a friend early on. Many people don't like or do well in school, and do fantastic in the market, so never let that bother you either way. Work ethic and common sense/honest in my experience is just as good or better as long as it's in a field that doesn't' require advanced knowledge/licensing.

Any friends or family in a career that sounds interesting? Sometimes if you can just get in entry-level, and kill-it, you can also make a career that way.

I would take some time to do those tests and evaluations, most colleges have them, and maybe there are some private ones. Try to see what fields it recommends you're a good fit for, to supplement what you're doing now. I have no idea what the media marketplace is like, I'm in technology. The thing I never thought about at that age was how big the marketplace was for a particular job/skill. Hopefully if you take such evaluations, they will help pair them with the industries that hire, and talk about growing/shrinking. A lot of schools also pipeline to specific companies, you can see if your community college does that (not directly but they have active industry involvement...)

Also, talk to the dean of the sub-school you are in (like engineering or whatever). Ask them for advice, ask them how it works, who they see getting hired, what the jobs are like, etc. I worked for years with the dean at a community college and he was a tireless fighter to get his students lined up for jobs, and he was well connected in the field in general. If not them, ask who might be good to talk to. See if you can attend any meetings or job presentation type things they may have too, we ran a few a year and we combed the crowd *hard* for good candidates. Often we'd just take good people and didn't even care if they had finished school, letting them take evening classes to wrap it up.
 
If you don't have any idea what you want to do and you are technically minded I would say an associates degree is a way to go. But if you plan to go into something specific, business, or anything that requires certification by a body of professionals you pretty much require a bachelor's. Reputation and certifications like the AACSB of the school matter more than anything in those cases and only universities can have those. I attend my school because it has debatably the best undergraduate business program in Montreal.
 
Applicant #1: "Hi, I have an A.S. degree and I'd like to come work your company."
Applicant #2: "Hi, I have an B.S. degree and I'd like to come work your company."

Applicant #1: "Sir, we're sorry that your french fires were under-salted. Here's a free order of fires to make up for it and I will be making proper fry-salting part of tomorrow morning's pre-shift meeting."

@faithful servant

That is purely based on your ill informed pre-conceived notions--which is exactly what this Thread is intended to challenge.

Do you have an argument?
 
I hear ya. That you're actively asking/doing is awesome, I was clueless and got lucky in following a friend early on. Many people don't like or do well in school, and do fantastic in the market, so never let that bother you either way. Work ethic and common sense/honest in my experience is just as good or better as long as it's in a field that doesn't' require advanced knowledge/licensing.

Any friends or family in a career that sounds interesting? Sometimes if you can just get in entry-level, and kill-it, you can also make a career that way.

I would take some time to do those tests and evaluations, most colleges have them, and maybe there are some private ones. Try to see what fields it recommends you're a good fit for, to supplement what you're doing now. I have no idea what the media marketplace is like, I'm in technology. The thing I never thought about at that age was how big the marketplace was for a particular job/skill. Hopefully if you take such evaluations, they will help pair them with the industries that hire, and talk about growing/shrinking. A lot of schools also pipeline to specific companies, you can see if your community college does that (not directly but they have active industry involvement...)

Also, talk to the dean of the sub-school you are in (like engineering or whatever). Ask them for advice, ask them how it works, who they see getting hired, what the jobs are like, etc. I worked for years with the dean at a community college and he was a tireless fighter to get his students lined up for jobs, and he was well connected in the field in general. If not them, ask who might be good to talk to. See if you can attend any meetings or job presentation type things they may have too, we ran a few a year and we combed the crowd *hard* for good candidates. Often we'd just take good people and didn't even care if they had finished school, letting them take evening classes to wrap it up.

Thanks Mach. That's really good advice. From what I've seen so far, The masters program at most schools for journalism, especially the IVYs are like on-the-job training. They call it work and most programs are so hands-on and intensive that Part-time is simply not an option. My cousin went through the journalism one at Columbia, but he's still unemployed a few months after graduating. He did everything with journalism there. Actually reported on NYC politics, got an internship with Bloomberg and got to tour/meet w/ industry leaders like Nate Silver and go to the debates if they were nearby. I also have a friend who works at CNN, who said CNN would pay for my masters if I got in to both. So we will see.
 
@Lursa

Consider, my local Community College costs only $1,500 per semester, and there are about 15 or so Associates Degrees (2 year programs) which will qualify a person for $40,000-$70,000 jobs--that is one hell of an input-output ratio compared to the 'traditional'/conformist advice given to the kids. Also, the credits apply equally in all areas, so once one gets an Associates Degree in one area, it is much easier/shorter route to get another in a related area. Then, a young adult could build up several such degrees while still very young (i.e. low twenties) at which point it would become nearly inconceivable they would not always have a solid paying job to fall back on for the rest of their lives--all without paying the absurd 4 year cost directly out of High School (btw, it is generally not '4 years' anymore, but often well more than 4). Furthermore, the A.S. degrees set up if they ever did want to pursue more advanced degrees, then they have a good chunk of the B.A./B.S. completed already without the first half cost; then, they could make that decision when they are closer to mid twenties range and actually able to think clearly about making such a significant life decision (of taking out a lot of money in loans for a B.A./B.S. and possibly higher i.e. M.A./M.S., PhD).

The wife and I both went to community college and transferred. Associates from the community college and a BS from a 4 year school. Saved quite a bit and did well enough to get a partial scholarship to make the private school similar in price to a state school. Not for everyone but certainly a good way to go to save money especially if the student is unsure of a major.
 
@faithful servant

That is purely based on your ill informed pre-conceived notions--which is exactly what this Thread is intended to challenge.

Do you have an argument?

Any employer with two communicating neurons would choose a candidate with a BS over one with an AS any day of the week. Getting an AS is only slightly better than a High School diploma and given the cost of getting s degree that's pretty much leaves you well behind your competition. It also caps your income pretty severely when compared to a Bachelors. Yes, you can find middle income jobs with an Associates, but beyond that the skillsets being asked for are out of your range.
 
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