Types of Pathways

Certificate Programs provide focused, specific skill sets to prepare you for a particular job. They include areas such as animal care and management, automotive repair, health informatics, and office assistant.

These offer the quickest return-on-investment as they are designed to provide you with a skill set that fits the needs of a particular job. Certificate Programs are also flexible when it comes to scheduling. You might be asked by an employer to take another Certificate Program if a work opportunity presents itself while you are on the job.

Certificate Programs may also include courses that can lead to a degree at a community college or four-year institution.

The Associate of Applied Arts (AAA), Associate of Applied Science (AAS), Associate of Applied Technology (AAT), and Associate of Occupational Studies (AOS) – most particularly AOS – are usually used to secure full-time employment in a particular field. None of these prevent you from pursuing additional studies – either immediately or in the future – but they will require some additional academic work if you’re interested in then transferring to a four-year program.

These programs between community colleges and four-year institutions exist in a variety of formats. Both SUNY and CUNY have robust transfer tools between and among their schools. In increasing numbers, private colleges are also partnering with community colleges to offer similar opportunities. The community college degrees normally pursued to benefit from a 2+2 are the Associate of Arts (AA) and Associate of Science (AS).

There are many reasons to consider beginning your higher education at a community college. Personal or family commitments. Financial. Academics. Putting a plan together that includes earning an associate degree then transferring to finish out your undergraduate program can be efficient in terms of both time and finances. For students planning to head to graduate school, the 2+2 approach can help optimize their financial commitment.

These pathways work best when they are established early in your community college experience, even as you prepare to leave high school. Key to this strategy is to identify a handful of potential four-year college destinations at the beginning of the process. You can then explore their pathway programs and community college partners.

Earning a four-year bachelor’s degree provides students with a well-rounded academic credential that provides flexibility to pursue a variety of professions and establishes an important foundation for graduate studies. Given the commitments of time, effort, and finances, students should consider this direction carefully.

As you gather information about four-year colleges, it is important to visit their campuses. Take a tour and speak with a member of the admissions staff. Ask current students about their experiences there. While there is no way to encapsulate your future four years into an afternoon’s visit, you will be able to get a sense of what being part of that campus community will be like. Utilizing each admissions staff as primary contacts, you should continue your exploration of potential schools throughout the application process and, when you gain admission, before you commit to enroll.

Work. Military. Family. Health. There are many reasons people do not pursue postsecondary education immediately after high school or leave college without completing their certificate or degree. These students have grown to be a significant cohort within the higher education arena. They are students whose postsecondary educational pathways are somewhat nontraditional. Nonetheless, they are a very important part of efforts to better prepare for the emerging economy of this millennium.

Sometimes a decision to “stop out” happens after a semester or more of college-level work. In some instances, individuals gain college credit through online courses offered through their work situation and/or acquire college credit-worthy experiences that will allow them to test out of courses.

The transfer and acquisition of academic course credit can be one of the easiest parts of a non-traditional student’s transition to college. It is important that non-traditional students seek out those institutions that are making concerted efforts to address the specific needs and aspirations of non-traditional students.