1. Tuition
Tuition at community college is relatively cheaper than attending a university straight out of high school. In fact, tuition at a community college tuition can be even less than half of what you would pay at a public university. Given that you may still be living with your parents, the expenses will be less overall, because the opportunity cost you incur is room and board expenses. No matter what type of socioeconomic background any student has, saving money during your college years has so many benefits. The extra money you will be saving while attending community college can go towards a savings account with an outstanding interest rate or retirement accounts like a Roth IRA (my personal favorite). Any student will also have extra money that may be useful for commuting expenses, credit card bills, textbooks, and any balances for tuition. This can easily be aided by having a part-time job that I recommend while attending community college, to earn more and save more.
2. Transfer Agreements
If you were to attend your local community college, you will see that many of the courses offered are transferable to a local university. This is because many local community colleges have transfer agreements with a local university and other universities in the state. For example, in California, community colleges have AD-T and AS-T programs. These associate degrees have students take all general education classes that will seamlessly transfer to California State University schools. Not only general education classes, but lower division major courses of the student’s major choice. By the time a student receives the associate degree for transfer, they will complete two years worth of university units and have two remaining years left to finish when they transfer.
3. Personalized attention
Community colleges offer smaller classroom settings than a traditional university will. This allows students to have more one-on-one time with instructors. This is a great advantage for students who like to want to learn at their own pace. It also creates a stronger connection with classmates. This is great for building a network overall in college.
4. Professional certificates
Community colleges can allow students to gain certificates in any specialty available. This can be in tax, medical billing, paralegal, etc. For students who want to learn more technically, community college offers this option through professional certificates. This can be great for both short term or long term goals.
5. Academic elasticity
Choosing between attending community college gives students access to the world of higher education with the ability to go at their own pace. This gives students the option to take classes they may be interested in and paving the way to find their niche. This can be great for students who may have struggled in high school or individuals experimenting on whether college is the best path for them to take since it is a huge investment financially and personally.