College Degree
From LoveToKnow College
Why Get A College Degree?
A college degree can bring new career possibilities or advancement in your current position. There's also the sense of accomplishment you gain in being able to say, "I'm a college graduate." But good feelings won't pay the bills. In The Value of a College Education, The ERIC Clearinghouse on Higher Education gathers data showing the lifetime earnings of adults ranging from $1.2 million for high school students, to $1.6 million for those with associate's degrees, and $2.1 million with a bachelor's degree.
Types of College Degrees
Associate's Degree
Associate's degrees are available from community colleges and junior colleges. They are usually two-year degrees, although part-time students will take longer. Some associate's degrees are stand-alone degrees, designed to prepare students for specific careers like fire science, nursing, office administration, or massage therapy. Associate's degrees can also be used as a start towards a bachelor's degree. However, students planning to take this route should choose classes carefully for maximum transferability between schools.
Bachelor's Degree
When you attend a college or university, your earned degree will be either a Bachelor of Arts or a Bachelor of Sciences. You will need to select a major, and either a minor or areas of specialty, depending on the requirements of your college. Some majors are highly career-focused, like engineering, while others give students a broad education, like international relations. However, even the most focused degree requires a number of general education credits for well-rounded graduates. While bachelor's degrees have traditionally been seen as "four-year" degrees, with scheduling difficulties, internships, and other obstacles, they frequently take five years for even full-time students to complete.
Master's Degree
Like the bachelor's degree, students earning a master's degree can receive a Master of Arts or a Master of Science. Other common master's degrees include the Master of Business Administration (MBA) and the Master of Fine Arts (MFA). A master's degree is much more focused than a bachelor's degree, and it may require as few as 30 credit hours, compared to 120 or more for a bachelor's. Even within this focused study, there may still be room for multiple concentration areas, and there will usually be a few required classes focusing on methods and theories. For some students, the master's degree is a stepping-stone to a doctorate degree, creating a foundation of research and teaching responsibilities. Others seek out a master's degree for career enhancement and personal growth.
Doctorate
Students earning a Ph.D. or Doctor of Philosophy degree are often preparing for a career in academia, and they undertake extensive courses in research methodologies and the theoretical underpinnings of their chosen fields, often while teaching undergraduate classes. The culmination of Ph.D. studies is the dissertation. Doctoral candidates must call upon years of schooling to create a research project, report their findings, and defend their dissertation to a committee.
Not all doctorate degrees are research-based, and these advanced options are often referred to as professional doctorates. A law degree is known as a Juris Doctor or Doctor of Jurisprudence. Students studying for a medical degree can earn a Doctor of Medicine, or M.D. from the Latin form of the name, or a D.O. degree, for Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine.
Certifications
Some career fields offer a series of professional certifications. For instance, computer technicians must attain A+ certification to be qualified for many jobs. At most colleges, these courses are available to students in degree programs, but they can also be taken independently as needed.
Some schools offer certificate and specialization programs for graduates who need continuing education but don't wish to earn an additional college degree. Instead, they take a series of three or four classes focused in areas relevant to their work needs, whether they're learning communication skills or new scientific methods.
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