Academic Profile Community College

Because there are so many options and types of degree programs, it is a good idea to first think about and list the factors that are important to you. Once you have an idea for yourself of what you are looking for, you can then look more specifically for universities that fit your needs. Think about what is important to you personally; not everyone is looking for the same thing and will place equal value on the same factors.

• Direction of study
  In America, every college has its own identity and academic focus, and that includes community colleges. Do you already know that you want to specialize in a particular direction during your studies? This can be an important reason for choosing a particular college.

• Articulation agreements
  Do you want to move on to a bachelor’s degree at a four-year university after obtaining your associate’s degree? Many community colleges already have articulation agreements with universities in the region or beyond. Does the community college have an articulation agreement with a particular university? Then with the right coursework and good study results, you can often automatically be accepted into a bachelor’s program at that university. Sometimes they even guarantee you a scholarship! Articulation agreements are often made with universities in the same state, but you can also transfer outside of the state in which you went to community college. As such, it can be interesting to see which universities the college has an agreement with.

• Student-to-teacher-ratio
  In America, you can find both large state universities and very small-scale private colleges. The size of the university, in turn, affects the organization of education. The student-to-teacher ratio indicates the ratio of students to faculty. Suppose the student to faculty ratio is 1:20, that means there is 1 teacher for every 20 students. The smaller the ratio, the more teaching staff the college employs, and the more personalized the teaching is.