Associate Degree Technology?

Q: I have a rather silly question, but since Iam not very familiar with American educational system I have to ask: During my "exploration" for a decent MSc in Computer Scinece (or in Information Technology) I found some colelges and universities that also offer an Associate in Computer Science (or any other science for that matter). I know what a Bachelor, Master or PhD is, but I haven't a clue what an Associate degree is?

A:they are two year post-secondary degrees. Some of the programs are very focused and technology or medically oriented, while others are designed for transfer to four year schools and simply represent the first half of a bachelor's degree. As you are looking for a graduate program, associate degrees should not be of any interest to you. The associate degree, a very American thing, is the outgrowth of the "junior" (now community) college phenomenom. It is awarded for two years (or the equivalent) of study past high school. Its original intent was to give a degree to those who completed junior college, but didn't go on to a university to earn a bachelor's. Kind of like a consolation prize. Well, that's evolved into a situation where many, many associate degrees proliferate, with a variety of majors. Also, there ae academically oriented associate degrees and technical/occupational ones. Oh, and community colleges aren't the only ones awarded them. Many colleges and universities award them along the student's way to the bachelor's. An associate's is essentially a two year diploma; it more or less represents the first half of coursework (foundation courses) for a bachelor's. I can add that the Associate's is a college/university degree in its own right. Furthermore, sometimes it is intended for transferring; sometimes it is not. Also, I will mention something that hasn't been discussed yet. If you are an Associate of Arts degree holder, sometimes you can transfer up to 90 credits towards the 120 of a Bachelor's as it is the case with Charter Oak State College. Conclusively, in spite of the fact that an Associate's is supposed to be comprised of 60 credits within a two-year frame, this is not always the case in practical terms. For example, I am an Associate of Arts degree holder with well over 100 something credits and got 90 credits transferred at Charter Oak State College. For these reasons, I cannot equate an American Associate's with a Canadian Diploma. Although they are similar, they don't always achieve the same end, so I don't consider them the same

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