Degree Programs

Community colleges offer a plethora of program options today, ensuring everyone who enrolls in one of these two-year schools can embark on the career of their dreams. For some, community college is a stepping stone into higher education that allows them to transfer to a college or university and pursue a four-year degree. For others, community college is the whole ball of wax – the training necessary to launch an exciting career path. For those who fall into the latter category, here is a list of 10 exciting fields you can enter with only a two-year degree under your belt.

Hospitality Manager

Hospitality managers can work anywhere there is a restaurant, hotel, or cruise ship – which means just about anywhere in the world. While many work their way up the hospitality hierarchy without formal training, an associate degree and on-the-job experience will get you where you want to go much faster. According to a report by Fox Business, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates the average salary for a food-service manager to be $46,320, while a hotel manager averages $45,800 annually.

Graphic Designer

Let your creativity shine with a position as a graphic designer. This professional works with a wide range of mediums, from print publications to film and the web. Graphic designers consider the vision of each individual client while weighing the needs of the target market to create messages that are attractive and effective. A two-year degree program is

Aerospace is big business in the state of Washington, with more than 600 aerospace-related businesses currently residing there. To ensure a sufficient influx of quality, trained workers, new grants are coming to community and technical colleges in order to provide necessary training as quickly as possible. Funding will come from both state and federal sources, with millions of dollars coming to colleges across the state. The additional money will be a boon to the aerospace industry in Washington, as well as institutes of higher education supplying the training.

Federal Funding Distributed to Washington Technical College

The Obama Administration offers the first grant for aerospace training to Renton Technical College in Renton, Washington. According to a report in the Renton Reporter, the $2.1 million grant was a portion of the funds awarded to the Spokane Community College system through the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training grants program, or TAACCCT grants. These grants are part of the workforce development plan created by the White House to help displaced workers get the training they need to find new lines of work. Community Colleges of Spokane were given $20 million for this purpose, according to the U.S. Department of Education website.

This video offers a look at the aerospace program in the District of Columbia Community College.

The Air Washington Consortium

A portion of the Spokane funds was

Throughout his presidency, President Obama has lauded community colleges for their role in educating skilled workers in a short amount of time for a price far less than that of a four-year institution. In recent years, the President has encouraged community colleges to continue to grow by graduating 5 million more students by the year 2020. More and more institutions are finding creative ways to strengthen their student graduation rate in an effort to meet Mr. Obama’s challenge.

One such institution, Ivy Tech Community College in Indiana, offers a program that helps students earn an associate's degree in just one year. Typically, this degree takes a minimum of two years to complete, thus the new program shaves 50 percent off the standard time commitment for an associate’s. Ivy Tech’s accelerated program, known as ASAP, has grown immensely in the four years since it’s inception. The program began at just two Indiana locations, but is now offered at nine locations throughout the state, with more locations on tap to participate beginning in 2015.

Compressing Education

Ivy Tech began its ASAP program in 2010, soon after many four-year institutions announced plans to compress bachelor's degree programs into a three-year curriculum. Colleges and universities all over the United States offer three-year bachelor’s degree programs, including:

• Hartwick College
• University of Toledo
• Georgia Perimeter College
• Southern New Hampshire University

All of these accelerated programs are meant to help students who cannot

While a wide array of community colleges across the country offer traditional music programs in musical practice, theory, and study, many new community college programs are offering more unique and specialized musical education courses. Today, students can enroll in programs to study historically-informed instruments, or they can even enroll in courses that teach students how to become employed in the field of music management and production.

Edmonds Community College offers a thorough and diverse array of music-oriented courses. Together, the Music Department of ECC established clear instruction goals, which include: “Giving students a solid foundation all facets of music, providing a range of performance and creative opportunities, offering diverse music theory and digital music courses, creating a dynamic, rich learning environment for students to pursue their passion for music and performing.”

To guide students towards achieving and engaging in these goals, ECC provides a variety of performance opportunities and events. Most notably, ECC fosters positive programs for musical enrichment through organizations such as the symphonic choir, the jazz band and choir, and the jazz workshop. These groups, along with many others, serve to enhance student learning and performance experiences.

Adding to these support systems, ECC’s Music Department also provides students with specialized acoustic fixtures in their music classrooms, various practice pianos and state of the art recording gear, in addition to ECC’s state of the art recording studio with a digital interface that students can interact with through hands-on opportunities.

Virginia Highlands Community College

While