Here’s a look at Bachelor’s Degrees offered throughout Arizona community colleges
Over 4,100 students throughout Maricopa Community College District in the fall 2024 semester are enrolled in a baccalaureate program, a year after the program’s district-wide launch, according to a MCCCD news release.
Two baccalaureate programs are offered at Mesa Community College, a Bachelor’s Degree in Data Analytics and Programming and Early Childhood Education: Dual Language.
The Early Childhood Education: Dual Language program began in the fall of 2023 with 20 students, and now there are more than 600 students in the program one year later, according to Jamie Lopez and Annapurna Ganesh, Early Childhood Education program faculty at Mesa Community College.
“For us, it’s not only a win for Mesa Community College or Maricopa Community Colleges District, it’s truly a win for the early childhood community,” said Ganesh.
This particular baccalaureate program was also offered at one other two-year college in Arizona, Northland Pioneer Community College.
Mesa Community College has virtual and in-person classes available to the convenience of students so that anyone can attend from around the state. This broadens the accessibility of the degree which could be the reason for the increased enrollment this year.
A bachelor’s degree at one of the Maricopa Community Colleges is one-third the cost that the same degree would be at one of the top four-year Arizona universities, with some students saving up to $40,000 in tuition on average, according to the news release.
“We have the rigor and the level of expectations that you would have at a university, but we have the smaller class size and the personalized attention that you have at a community college. It really is the best of both worlds,” said Lopez.
A bachelor’s degree from a community college opens up job opportunities for students committed to a major that an associate degree would be an introduction to, according to Ganesh.
The program includes internships and support from organizations in the field. Students get to experience working in the career that they want, according to Lopez.
The first students to earn a bachelor’s degree from Mesa Community College are expected to graduate in the spring of 2026.
The Maricopa County Community College District is growing to be the largest community college system in the nation. There are more than 100,000 students enrolled in the fall 2024 semester, according to the news release.
MCCCD offers 11 baccalaureate programs at its 10 community colleges in Arizona.
MCC did not supply data on the college’s specific bachelorette program enrollment for 2024 in time for this article’s publication
