Arkansas State University is offering a program that allows undergraduate students an opportunity to complete a four-year degree in three years. The program started this fall and it is called Degree in 3. Chancellor Dr. Tim Hudson says the program can provide a huge savings for students and families.
“We do everything we can to hold down administrative costs and overhead costs; but still, it is hard to make a significant impact in the total cost of attendance for students. By reducing the four-year degree to three years, you can make a significant impact and reduce the cost for students and their families.”
He says the process takes a lot of planning between students and advisors.
“We know this is not for everyone. This is for that student that is focused, who has a good idea as to what they want to do, and for whom their families can save up to a fourth of the cost of getting their first degree.”
Provost and Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Research at Arkansas State is Dr. Lynita Cooksey. She says the program is possible because a lot of high school students are taking college classes, which can help cut down the time they are in school.
“If students are coming in with between 12 and 15 or more hours of advanced credit either through concurrent or advanced placement hours, they may have shaved off as much as a semester or more before they even get to us. Some of our students come to us with no credit and launch into this program with a full academic load. This is designed to make sure their future path is designed for success.”
She tells how many programs are involved.
“Right now, we have about 20 programs that are involved in this. We do also know that, based on the student, there may be other programs that can qualify for this program. The 20 that we have identified are the ones that make sense to us, but the great thing is that this is customized to the student and can be adjusted.”
While students are on an accelerated pace to graduate, she says students can also participate in university life:
“They can still be active in clubs, organizations, and leadership positions. There are some students who really thrive under taking a full academic load and still participating in university activities. They shouldn’t be frightened to get involved in this.”
Degree in 3 allows students to leave school earlier, or take the fourth year and immediately launch into graduate school.
