What's the Difference?
Welcome to the English 103 Weebly website created by your fellow classmates to distinguish the main differences between community colleges versus 4 year institutions. On this page listed below are some helpful statistics and facts to help determine a difference between the two.
College is a major opportunity for any student that has the privilege to attend. However there are many options for an individual to decide upon. Thousands of colleges exist in the world and it can be a stressful time for a student to decide their future so to speak. This website can provide many different statistics that will show the significant difference between community college versus a 4 year institution. These facts might make the decision for a undecided high school graduate can think about. Both institutions can provide many positive and negative factors on all aspects of college life. First let's explore the interesting rates of community colleges.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE STATS.
Community colleges is a great way for students to save money since the cost is significantly lower than four year public colleges.
What is a community college?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a community college is defined as a 2-year government supported college that offers an associate degree (Webster 2003).
Across the United States there are 1,655 community colleges. Of these 1,047 are public institutions and 415 are private (Snyder 244).
According to the New York times in Texas, 100 students enrolled in a public college where 79 attended a community college. Out of the 79 that enrolled to the community college only 2 were able to graduate and earn their 2-year degree on time (Lewin 1).
in 1999-2000 62% of community colleges had an open admisssions policy, compared to 7.5% of public four year colleges (Snyder 170).
Community colleges serve close to half of the undergraduate students in the United States, about 6.5 million credit students in 2005 (American Association of Community Colleges 3).
In the 1999-00 school year the number of Associate Degrees conferred at public community colleges was 411,633. Sixty-three percent of these degrees were awarded to women and 37% to men (Snyder 170).
The most common programs of study offered at community colleges in the US are business/ management/ marketing and health professions/clinical sciences, which are offered at 1,162 and 1,101 colleges respectively. The least common programs are military technologies and religious/ theological vocations, with only 3 and 9 colleges offering them respectively (Community College facts 4).
Example of community colleges would be:
Kaplan Community College
Ivy Tech Community College
Harrison Community College: Accredited college that offers 11 different campuses in the state of Indiana. They have over 75,000 graduates. Harrison provides career-focused degree opportunities, along withLifetime Career Assistance
University Statistics (4 year public institution)
Things become complicated when discussing the differences between colleges because there are so many different categories. Examples include four year public colleges, community colleges, four year independent college, two year independent colleges, and regional higher education centers. The purpose of this website is to decribe the differences only between community colleges and four year public universities. When debating what a university is many come to disagreements because of the name. A better way to describe the differences between community colleges and universities it is better to describe the university as a four year public institution. This may lower the confusion because when getting into this topic specifics can make things very complicated. Let's first establish what a university is:
What is a University?
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary a university is an institution of higher learning providing faculties for teaching and research and authorized and authorized to grant academic degrees. More specifically: One made up of an undergraduate division which confers bachelor's degrees and graduate division which comprises a graduate school and professional schools each of which may confer master's degrees and doctorates (Webster 2003).
According to College Board, in 201144% of a full time undergraduate college students attend a four year college that has published charges of less than $9,000 per year for tuition and fees (College Costs 2).
Approximately 28 percent of full-time private nonprofit four-year college students are enrolled in institutions charging $36,000 or more yearly in tuition and fees (College Costs 2).
Private colleges and universities have better, but not great four-year grad rates. Nearly 48% of students graduate in four years from private schools. The vast majority of students in this country, however, attend public institutions where the average four-year grad is a measly 27% (O'Shaughnessy 1).
25 Public Universities with best four-year graduation rates
Are students more attracted to community colleges or four year institutions?
Through facts it seems that the attraction rate for a student to attend a four year college is far greater than a student wanting to attend a community college (National Center for Education Statistics 2).
Does it take longer for a student to complete a bachelor's degree if they start at a community college rather than a four year public university?
On average, it takes students 11⁄2‐2 years longer to complete bachelor’s degrees if they begin at community colleges than if they begin at four‐year colleges. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average time it takes to complete a bachelor’s degree is:
Some examples of Universities in Indiana Include:
Ball State University University of Bloomington Trine University
Indiana University Indiana University East Purdue University
Indiana State University Marian University Vincennes University
College is a major opportunity for any student that has the privilege to attend. However there are many options for an individual to decide upon. Thousands of colleges exist in the world and it can be a stressful time for a student to decide their future so to speak. This website can provide many different statistics that will show the significant difference between community college versus a 4 year institution. These facts might make the decision for a undecided high school graduate can think about. Both institutions can provide many positive and negative factors on all aspects of college life. First let's explore the interesting rates of community colleges.
COMMUNITY COLLEGE STATS.
Community colleges is a great way for students to save money since the cost is significantly lower than four year public colleges.
What is a community college?
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary a community college is defined as a 2-year government supported college that offers an associate degree (Webster 2003).
Across the United States there are 1,655 community colleges. Of these 1,047 are public institutions and 415 are private (Snyder 244).
According to the New York times in Texas, 100 students enrolled in a public college where 79 attended a community college. Out of the 79 that enrolled to the community college only 2 were able to graduate and earn their 2-year degree on time (Lewin 1).
in 1999-2000 62% of community colleges had an open admisssions policy, compared to 7.5% of public four year colleges (Snyder 170).
Community colleges serve close to half of the undergraduate students in the United States, about 6.5 million credit students in 2005 (American Association of Community Colleges 3).
In the 1999-00 school year the number of Associate Degrees conferred at public community colleges was 411,633. Sixty-three percent of these degrees were awarded to women and 37% to men (Snyder 170).
The most common programs of study offered at community colleges in the US are business/ management/ marketing and health professions/clinical sciences, which are offered at 1,162 and 1,101 colleges respectively. The least common programs are military technologies and religious/ theological vocations, with only 3 and 9 colleges offering them respectively (Community College facts 4).
Example of community colleges would be:
Kaplan Community College
Ivy Tech Community College
Harrison Community College: Accredited college that offers 11 different campuses in the state of Indiana. They have over 75,000 graduates. Harrison provides career-focused degree opportunities, along withLifetime Career Assistance
University Statistics (4 year public institution)
Things become complicated when discussing the differences between colleges because there are so many different categories. Examples include four year public colleges, community colleges, four year independent college, two year independent colleges, and regional higher education centers. The purpose of this website is to decribe the differences only between community colleges and four year public universities. When debating what a university is many come to disagreements because of the name. A better way to describe the differences between community colleges and universities it is better to describe the university as a four year public institution. This may lower the confusion because when getting into this topic specifics can make things very complicated. Let's first establish what a university is:
What is a University?
According to Merriam-Webster dictionary a university is an institution of higher learning providing faculties for teaching and research and authorized and authorized to grant academic degrees. More specifically: One made up of an undergraduate division which confers bachelor's degrees and graduate division which comprises a graduate school and professional schools each of which may confer master's degrees and doctorates (Webster 2003).
According to College Board, in 201144% of a full time undergraduate college students attend a four year college that has published charges of less than $9,000 per year for tuition and fees (College Costs 2).
Approximately 28 percent of full-time private nonprofit four-year college students are enrolled in institutions charging $36,000 or more yearly in tuition and fees (College Costs 2).
Private colleges and universities have better, but not great four-year grad rates. Nearly 48% of students graduate in four years from private schools. The vast majority of students in this country, however, attend public institutions where the average four-year grad is a measly 27% (O'Shaughnessy 1).
25 Public Universities with best four-year graduation rates
- United States Naval Academy 86%
- University of Virginia 85%
- College of William and Mary 82%
- United Air Force Academy 79%
- United State Military Academy 76%
- United State Coast Guard Academy 75%
- University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill 73%
- University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 70%
- University of Mary Washington 70%
- James Madison University 68%
- Miami University (OH) 68%
- The College of New Jersey 68%
- St. Mary's College of Maryland 67%
- University of Delaware 67%
- UCLA 65%
- University of California, Berkeley 64%
- University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign 64%
- SUNY at Binghamton, NY 64%
- United State Merchant Marines 64%
- University of Maryland-College Park 63%
- University of California, Irvine 60%
- Penn State University-Main Campus 60%
- Citadel Military College of South Carolina 59%
- Virginia Military Institute 59%
- SUNY at Geneseo, NY 58%
Are students more attracted to community colleges or four year institutions?
Through facts it seems that the attraction rate for a student to attend a four year college is far greater than a student wanting to attend a community college (National Center for Education Statistics 2).
- 39% of students at community colleges who intended to pursue bachelor’s degrees left school without completing a degree or certificate program
- 17% of students at four year public colleges left school without completing a degree
- 16% of students at four year private colleges left school without completing a degree
Does it take longer for a student to complete a bachelor's degree if they start at a community college rather than a four year public university?
On average, it takes students 11⁄2‐2 years longer to complete bachelor’s degrees if they begin at community colleges than if they begin at four‐year colleges. According to the National Center for Education Statistics, the average time it takes to complete a bachelor’s degree is:
- 71 months for students who begin at 2‐year colleges
- 55 months for students who begin at four year public colleges
- 50 months for students who begin at four year private colleges
Some examples of Universities in Indiana Include:
Ball State University University of Bloomington Trine University
Indiana University Indiana University East Purdue University
Indiana State University Marian University Vincennes University
Bell Tower at Ball State University Picture taken by Megan Swaim