Alex Tech offers its own AA degree

Some area residents may still call it the Vo-tech, but what Alexandria Technical and Community College (ATCC) offers to students and the community has evolved dramatically over the last 50 years.

Its newly expanded mission to serve as both a technical and community college allows the college to continue its reputation for excellence while meeting the unique needs of more students through its associate in arts degree.

Acting in its role as a comprehensive technical and community college, the college began offering its own associate in arts (AA) degree this fall.

This degree provides a high quality and cost effective option for students to complete their first two years of a bachelor’s degree, according to ATCC leaders.

While the degree is new to the college, ATCC is well versed in transfer degrees and liberal arts education. The college has been providing liberal arts education for more than 25 years and has worked with private colleges and public universities to create smooth transitions for students transferring their ATCC degrees to bachelor degrees for more than a decade.

ATCC administration said the AA degree is a perfect addition to the Alexandria Technical and Community College’s degree offerings. The college already has eight associate in science degrees that are designed to transfer into bachelor degrees.

All of the transfer degrees complement more than 40 technical and career focused programs offered by the college.

Continuing in its tradition of quality, the college has been ranked eighth of America’s 50 Best Community Colleges by Washington Monthly for fall 2010.

Much of the college’s recognition is due to the high scores its students give the college on national benchmarking surveys. The college repeatedly has scored well above comparable colleges in student satisfaction and student engagement.

Additionally, ATCC has had the highest graduation and transfer rate of all public two-year colleges in Minnesota for the last three years.

While the college has undergone a recent mission expansion, a name change, and added the AA degree, it hasn’t wavered from its commitment to excellence in education, according to college leaders.

ATCC is accredited by The Higher Learning Commission and is a member of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities System.

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