The U.S. Bachelor's Degree

Bachelor's and Associate Degrees
The bachelor's degree typically takes four years to complete. The associate degree usually takes two years to complete. Associate degree programs may be "terminal" programs, which lead into specific careers upon graduation, or "transfer" programs, which correspond to the first two years of a bachelor's degree and tend to be more liberal arts based. Under the latter option one could then transfer into the third year of a four-year bachelor's degree program. Associate degree programs are offered at two-year colleges known as junior or community colleges. Four-year colleges and universities offer bachelor's degree programs, with a small number also offering associate degree programs.

The U.S. Bachelor's Degree
One of the most attractive features of the bachelor's degree program in the United States is that it is highly flexible. You can usually choose from a wide variety of courses and create your own unique program of study. The degree is awarded after you complete a specified number of credits, which are usually completed in four years of full-time study. The first year is called the freshman year; the second is called sophomore; the third, junior; and the fourth, senior. You may read that students in the United States often take longer than four years to complete their degrees. This may be because they change majors and need to accumulate enough credits in the new major field to earn the degree. Or it may be because they take less than a full-time course load per term for academic, personal, or financial reasons. International students, however, cannot study part-time and must maintain full-time status.