I come from somewhere that just has colleges and that’s it. What even is a community college?
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Community colleges typically offer two-year programs (known as associates degrees). They also focus on other forms of education such as diplomas/GEDs, and certifications. They are often quite cheaper than larger, four-year colleges, but also dovetail into them allowing you to do 2 years at the community college then finish the 2 years at a four-year college, but at a much lower cost.
Community colleges are often attended by people who live nearby (hence ‘community’). A lot of community college campuses— not all (I believe?)— have no on-site dormitories, as it was predominantly designed to be commuted to by those nearby.
Regular colleges (State, Private, etc.) differ in that they will typically seek to attract out of state students because of how they are funded. I don’t know enough about college funding to state specifics, but I would assume community colleges are funded by their specific state or county, and state/private colleges rely more on government funding, alumni donations, and revenue.
Since many four-year colleges or universities often require you to complete generals courses (English, Writing, Math/Algebra, Science, etc.) but tend to cost a lot more, a community college offers the ability to get these types of courses done and perhaps some of your actual major as well within two years. It ends up with you getting an Associate’s. You can get both an Associate’s and Bachelor’s (four years) at a regular college/university by going there all four years, but again, it usually costs a lot more among a few others personal reasons why someone might choose a smaller college over a larger one. Some people also prefer the smaller classes to the hundred people lecture halls that a university might have in some cases. As well as community colleges offering programs like certifications and whatnot for those who aren’t seeking a full degree for a lower cost than at a university. Community colleges work by allowing those who live locally to attend with in-state tuition costs. If you are out of state, unless you have special circumstances like being previous military, you would have to pay the out-of-state tuition. Which in that case, you may as well attend a regular university if it’s close to the same cost.
Typically, but not exclusively, community colleges, confer the lowest post-secondary collegiate degree available. The associate’s of the arts degree. Sometimes community colleges are called ‘junior colleges,’ but I have seen that fall into disuse. The term ‘community’ college is in reference to its stated mission, to serve the educational needs of the community. That will mean non-degree conferring studies as well, if you want to become a paramedic, you will probably end up at a community college. If you need to learn to fix a car, community college. I do IT certification tests occasionally, back before online proctoring was ubiquitous I would take those exams at the local community college.
I say not exclusively because in some states you can earn some bachelor’s degrees at a community college. In my local area you can get your BSN (bachelor’s in the science of nursing) solely at the community college. The main mission of the community college is to reduce the barrier to education as well as provide options that are relevant, since nursing is in demand and the traditional college schedule is a major barrier, my state decided BSN should be able to be earned at the community college.
It is a great time to be a community college attendee. In my state, as well as others, the community colleges offer something called ‘dual enrollment’ to high schoolers. This means there are a non-zero number of high school graduates who, when they walk for high school graduation, also earn an associates degree. Since community colleges are often affiliated with local universities, you can often transfer the class with the grade to the university. It is how I did calc I-III, at a community college. The class code had -GT in it, which stands for my state’s little program for allowing classes to transfer without fuss.
If I were to mentor high school sophomores (and I had a colleague do this very path), I would suggest dual enrollment instead of AP, earn the associates (in my state the college credits are covered by the high school) with only -GT classes, enter college as an academic junior, earn your BA/BS by age 20 only paying for 2 years of in-state tuition. In some states, depending on family income, NY is a good example, you can actually get all 4 years done by 20 with *zero* tuition paid.
Community colleges do what public colleges were supposed to do, provide an affordable way to get an education.
People often go to college (or university) to obtain their BA (Bachelor of Arts) or BS (Bachelor of Science) degree.
To obtain your Bachelor’s degree, it typically takes people 4 years to complete.
Those 4 years are divided into two: lower division and upper vision. The lower consist of the first two years, and upper with the last two years.
The lower division is a general knowledge. Like teaching you the basics of Political Science 101 so that you understand the basics of how the US government works, how many senators we have and the number of terms they can serve. Then if you’re interested, you advance to the next course and it goes to the harder stuff.
Those lower divisions are offered in community college (or junior college).
So in community college, you get to learn all the basics. If you do learn all the basics, then you can get an Associate of Arts/Science degree. Once you learn all the basics, you can transfer those class credits you’ve taken to a 4year college. This is often the route to take if you want to save money. Community college is considerably cheaper than 4yr college.
Community college is a place that offers Associate degrees and certificates preparing students for transferring to a university or prepraring students for a technical career
A regular college is a host of many disciplines. You may find something like “College of Engineering” and “College of Liberal Arts and Sciences” at a university.
Community colleges offer a cheaper and more flexible option for students. They also sometimes offer work ready programs that students can complete faster and be ready to work sooner. The one I work at has a robust and competitive Health Sciences department that graduates RNs, Dental Hygienist, and several other profitable programs in healthcare (and you can make a lot of money and never step foot on a University campus if you can crack it in something like Dental Hygiene). We also have a much closer relationship with the community and even offer fully funded degrees to locals, and many of our students are non traditional or even High school students.
A few other differences, based on my experience as a faculty member at a community college compared to my experience as a student at a state university:
Positives:
1) CC are more focused on student success.
2) CC instructors’ sole job is to teach, as compare to a University, where tenure-track professors are often focused on research.
3) CC are easier to get into. If your ACT is not at the college-ready level, you may be required to take extra courses to get you caught up.
4) In addition to transfer courses, CC also offer 2-year career degrees in fields like EMS, nursing, advanced manufacturing, robotics, etc.
Negatives:
1) CC lacks the “college” experience of living on campus, major sporting events, etc.
2) Some universities may not accept transfer credits in certain subjects, and/or the courses may not line up exactly. Important to check on this before you take a bunch of classes assuming they will transfer.
Community college is typically a 2-year associates degree, that’s usually either more of a general education degree or more job-specific training. Virtually all who attend do so locally, and many courses are geared toward working adults so held during evenings and weekends. They are public institutions run by county or state, and are fairly affordable.
A regular college/university is a 4-year bachelors degree that’s much more rigorous/prestigious degree that opens a lot more doors career-wise or as a step toward graduate school. Americans often move away to attend college/university, and they assume students studies are their primary focus, so classes are predominantly scheduled during the day on weekdays. Universities are either public run by the state or private (usually religiously affiliated, but with that having varying degrees of actual influence over the school)
Doing my first two years at community college saved me thousands of dollars. I was able to pay for classes out of pocket rather than taking out loans because it was so much cheaper. I feel the classes were just as good, if not better, due to the smaller class sizes. Seriously, take your 101 classes at a community college and transfer the credits if you’re able to do so.
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