<p>Getting ready to start my first day of college next week, and am a little nervous. I'm going after an Associate Arts degree, and due to a busy schedule, I will probably end up taking two classes per semester until graduating. From the looks of things it'll take four years to graduate taking two classes each semester. I like the idea of that, because it seems most people spend four years in college, and it'll be like high-school again in a way. Would it take four years to graduate taking two classes per semester pursuing the Associate Arts degree from this institution? <a href="http://madisonville.kctcs.edu/Academics/Programs_of_Study/Transfer_Degrees.aspx">http://madisonville.kctcs.edu/Academics/Programs_of_Study/Transfer_Degrees.aspx</a> </p>
<p>It’s showing that the core gen ed classes are 11 courses, or 33 credits. The AA requirements involve 4 classes, or 12 credits. The elective courses make up 5 courses, or 15 credits. That adds up to 60 credits, and 20 classes. </p>
<p>If you were to take 4 years to complete the AA, that would come out to 5 courses per year. So, no you couldn’t get by with just two courses each semester, unless you also took a course every summer. Let’s suppose you started this fall. </p>
<p>Fall 2014 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Spring 2015 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Summer 2015 - 1 class, 3 credits
Fall 2015 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Spring 2016 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Summer 2016 - 1 class, 3 credits
Fall 2016 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Spring 2017 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Summer 2017 - 1 class, 3 credits
Fall 2017 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Spring 2018 - 2 classes, 6 credits
Summer 2018 - 1 class, 3 credits</p>
<p>That’s how it would break down. That may be off though. Not all classes are 3 credit hours, so it may ultimately be more credits than that. If you didn’t take any summer classes, it would take 5 years to finish the associates at two classes per semester.</p>
<p>Most people spend four years in college…but that’s four years to get a bachelors degree. Not an associates. An associates is set up to take only two years. You can spend longer on it if that’s what must be done, but that really depends on your long term goals. Are you planning on transferring? Or are you planning to just get an associates? If you’re planning on transferring, I would strongly encourage you to take on a heavier load than that, unless you want to take 8-9 years to get a bachelors degree. A typical college course load is around 15 credits per semester. If you could take on a slightly heavier course load, you’d be able to shave a lot of time off of that. </p>
<p>Do you have an intended major? Some majors will require more than 60 credits to complete an associates. I’m doing a physics transfer degree at a CC right now, and it requires a minimum of 72 credits to complete it. </p>
<p>College isn’t going to be like high school. If you go into it thinking that it will be, you’ll be disappointed. </p>
<p>I agree… you have to take 20 classes. What are you planning to do with that? Get a job? Transfer to a 4 year college? Are you working full time at the same time? Do you have to?</p>
<p>That’s what I forgot to mention. Why do you want to complete your associates 2 classes at a time? </p>
<p>It’s certainly not uncommon, but if there isn’t a compelling reason to do it that way, it’s better to do it more quickly. I’m at a community college, and I do know people who do it this way because they have to work full time, support kids etc. </p>
<p>If you’re getting financial aid, keep in mind that the Pell grant has a cap on the number of semesters it can be received. You can receive it for a total of 12 semesters. Since you’d be going part time, you wouldn’t be receiving the full amount. You likely wouldn’t have any grant money for summer semesters, which means you’d have to pay out of pocket for summer classes. If you’re planning on transferring, you’d end up paying for some semesters without Pell money, which makes a big difference. For the 2014-2015 school year the Pell grant is capped at $5730, which is a very substantial amount. </p>