The amount of time spent getting an Associate’s in Accounting depends on a few factors. Time spent in class will factor in to how long it takes. The money that students have to devote to the program versus obligations in other areas of life will have an impact too. Job and family responsibilities can take away from the time and money the student is able to devote to a degree program. Online associate degrees require the same amount of work to obtain as a traditional, on-campus degree, but there are many conveniences that can make an online program faster to complete.

Related Resource: Top 50 Best Associates in Accounting Online

Traditional Program Time

Most traditional, on-campus associate degree programs can take upwards of 24 months or longer to complete. The time spent in class, the amount of classes available and the teachers willing to instruct the class all factor into how long it will take a student to complete all their studies. When students have to work, they might only be able to attend classes part time, which will further stretch the time it takes to graduate with a degree.

When students are able to attend classes online in their spare time, they are more likely to finish school early. Instead of spending a few hours in travel time each month, they can devote that time to taking more classes. A part-time student with limited time can speed up their degree program because there’s less travel time and more flexibility in the way the student can study and attend class. The school will offer more classes because their teachers don’t have to physically be in every class to teach. This gives students more class time flexibility.

When student have family obligations demanding their attention, the amount of time devoted to attending classes in person can diminish.  Students can also be time crunched for completing classes based on their work schedule and responsibilities. The option to complete an Associate’s in Accounting online helps to overcome these obstacles and allow students to complete their degree faster.

Accounting Degree

The coursework that students complete online is a blend of topics and assignments they’ll have to complete on their own versus assignments the class will review together. Online classes typically have a forum where students can interact with one another. Teachers rely on peer review for some assignments while others are submitted through the computer and graded by the teacher. There will be recorded lectures, book assignments and projects that the student will have to submit, which is the same as in the classroom.

The coursework that students take in an accounting program don’t require their physical presence in a classroom. If the classes involved a laboratory like biology or other topics, the classes might have to be a blend of Internet and on-campus options. The Associate’s in Accounting degree covers topics like payroll, taxes, computer applications and principles of accounting. None of these courses require a student’s physical presence in a classroom on campus. It’s the perfect degree for online learning environments.

Student  CNN has reported that while online degrees are new, most employers are agreeable to them. While an on-campus degree will typically require two years or more to complete, an online associate degree can be completed in as little as 18 months. Ultimately, the time it takes to complete an online Associate’s in Accounting depends on the time you can devote to completing your coursework.