College Transfer -- How It Works

Associate's Degrees for College Transfer

Students preparing for transfer to
a four-year college or university may choose one of the following degree programs: the Associate of Arts (AA) degree is for students intending to transfer to four-year university programs in most non-scientific fields including business; the Associate of Science (AS) degree is for students planning to transfer to four-year university programs in scientific or technical areas.

Seattle Central Community College has direct transfer agreements with the
four-year schools and their branch campuses in the State of Washington. Students transferring with an AA degree will be given 90 quarter credits towards their 180 credit baccalaureate degree. Students should work closely with an advisor or counselor to ensure that all possible degree requirements are met prior to transfer.

There are many other universities that our students transfer to every year.
Many of them are listed here (pdf). These universities recognize the benefits of attending a community college for the first two year and are pleased to have international students who have already been successful at a community college transfer for their final two years.

The Seattle Central is well known for excellent academic programs and dedicated instructors. We offer a two-year degree that makes it easy to transfer to university for the final two years of your bachelor's degree. At significantly less cost than attending comparable programs at US universities, we are the affordable choice for high-quality US higher education.
For the student who wishes to earn a bachelor's degree at a U.S. university, a degree from Seattle Central Community College opens many doors.

“SCHOOL,” “COLLEGE,” and “UNIVERSITY”

In the United States, the word “school” describes any place where people learn.
You can call a college a “school.” You can even call a university a “school.”
You can use the word “school” for any English language institute, graduate program, or secondary (“high”) school.

College or university follows after high school, or secondary school. A college in the U.S.A. is not a high school or secondary school. College and university programs begin in the thirteenth year of school, when a student is 17 or 18 years old or older. A two-year college , called a community college, offers an Associate’s Degree. A four-year college or university offers a Bachelor’s Degree. Programs that offer these degrees are called “undergraduate” schools. The two year college's Associate's Degree (if it is a College Transfer Program) will transfer to the four year college and will count as the first two years of the Bachelor's Degree.

A “university” is a group of schools for studies after secondary school. At least one of these schools is a college where students receive a Bachelor’s Degree. The other schools in a university are “graduate” (also known as “postgraduate”) schools where students receive advanced degrees. Therefore, a university offers both the Bachelor’s Degree and graduate degrees such as the Master’s (M.A.) and Doctorate (Ph.D.). You can earn a Bachelor’s Degree at either a college or a university.

However, students in the U.S.A. prefer to use the word “college” rather than the word “university” when they talk about the four-year undergraduate program and the Bachelor’s Degree. They say “going to college” and “a college degree” when they talk about undergraduate programs at either a college or a university. Most “colleges” are separate schools. They are not located in a university. Some colleges are part of a university and are located on the university campus. (The “campus” is the school buildings and surrounding area.) A few colleges offer graduate programs in selected subjects. Usually, however, it is universities that offer graduate programs. So, Americans use the word “university” and not “college” when they talk about graduate study.