This is How Long You Should Go to College for
If you have ever been to high school, you will undoubtedly have to consider going to college. How long you should go to college depends on your goals. If you want to make a lot of money, go to college long enough to get a job that covers your expenses so, a certificate or a two year associate’s degree can work. Then self study to learn about wealth building. If you want an average income, to qualify for more jobs, become a specialist in your field and retire, you will likely want at least a four year bachelor’s degree.
If you ask me, the whole point of going to college is to get a job. So, why not get the quickest and cheapest job qualification? If you see a job that only requires a certification and the pay will cover your bills with some cash left over, you should be good. Especially, you want to make a lot of money.
The reason why I associate a certificate and an associates degree with make a lot of money is because they cost less and get completed much faster than a higher degree.
Secondly, with the time and money you save, you can then apply it to learn how to build wealth instead of falling for the rat race. Let’s cover these options in more detail.
Going to College Long Enough for a Certificate
A certification is the fastest award you can gain from a college that will give you a credential to earn a decent job. If they type of work you are interested in will allow you to get started with just a certification, I would highly consider it to start getting paid. If that certificate job can pay all of your expenses with some money left over, you are in the same position as someone could be with a bachelor’s degree. Moreover, even some students with bachelor’s degrees can not cover their expenses after spending all that time and money.
On the other hand, if you can’t find any certifications that interest you, you may have to consider going for an associates degree. Another limiting factor for certifications is, their just isn’t a certification for everything. No matter if you look into a different college, you may not be able to find a certification program that relates with a job you can see yourself doing.
How Long it Takes to Get a Certificate
The length of your certification depends on what field you are entering. For example, if you wanted a basic certification like the A+ from CompTia for an IT job, you can study for that certification and have it in as little as a month. On the other hand, if you wanted a Certified Nurse Assistant CNA certification, it can take as long as six months to complete.
To find out how long your certification program takes, just look up the certification on the college’s website and the program will typically show a length.
After you find a certification you like, I recommend going to a site like, Indeed.com to look at the job requirements for your intended position. This will confirm the requirements for the jobs you will apply for and save you time by knowing in advance exactly what certification is required and not get surprised once you’re ready to apply.
Going to College Long Enough for an Associates Degree
Now, if you were not able to find a certificate program that interests you, you may want to consider an associates degree. Unfortunately, it will take you longer in college but, depending on your major or field of study, it may be required to have at least an Associates degree anyway.
In the same way that you would look up your potential job with a certificate to confirm the hiring requirements, you should also do this with an Associates degree. Moreover, if you find the job you want only requires a certificate or even better, no degree, you might want to consider two new options.
If your desired job does not show any experience required then, you can skip going to college altogether. Remember, the point of college is to get a good job but if you can find a good job without college, you’re one HUGE step above your peers. Following this further, we consider a good job to be one that will sustain your monthly bills with hopefully, some money leftover.
If you have confirmed through research that your potential line of work only requires a certificate but you could not find the program at a local college, you have another certificate option. You can try searching for colleges with online programs. By going to school online, this will open the door to attending college anywhere. Just find the college with your desired certificate and apply with them.
As a side note, do not worry about the name of the college. It will not matter after you get a job. The most important thing to consider when picking your college is the accreditation. Ensure that the college is regionally accredited by for you attend. This will help improve your chances of transferring credits if you ever unfortunately need to change colleges.
How Long it Takes to Get an Associates Degree
On average, it usually takes about two years to complete an associates degree. That is assuming the requirement to gain the degree is 60 credits. If you take a full-time course load and do not miss any semesters, you should be on track to graduate in two years. You can easily check your track with a college counselor.
Following this further, the program curriculum is typically on the website under the major or field of study you choose. You would be able to find a chart or PDF that breaks down the classes required to include the credit hours.
Attending College for a Duration to Build Wealth
Since we have stated throughout this article that getting a quick good job and degree are best, we will now cover why in more detail. Since we are considering college just to get a job, and need a job just for money, we need college to be fast.
This is because college and most people will not teach you the truth about money. Working a job is the slowest way to get money. However, it is a common starting point. Most people getting the starting point of a job for money and turn it into their life. This happens because they never learn how to make the most income.
To make the most money, you need assets. Assets are things that make money for you. An example of an asset is a book. If you write a book and sell it, that book can make you money for the rest of your life. What if you wrote 20 books? You may potentially have 20 forms or payment or streams of income going to your bank account. This is the best way to get money and acquire wealth.
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Attending College for a Duration to Earn a Bachelor’s Degree
Honestly, you should not have to consider going for a Bachelor’s degree with the mindset of only trying to get a good job. You should be able to get a good job with a certificate or an associates degree. If you unfortunately decide to go for a bachelor’s degree, you will waste more time and money than getting a certificate and associate’s degree combined!
How Long it Takes to Get a Bachelor’s Degree
A bachelor’s degree typically takes about four years to complete. This assuming you go to school full time and your program takes 120 credits to complete. Just like the previous degree s suggest, just look at your college’s website to clarify how many credits it will take to complete your major.
If you are someone going for a Bachelor’s degree, you are likely doing it because you feel that have the degree is a level of success and may lead to a lot of money. Moreover, all of your peers and family think it’s a great idea. On the contrary, most people who have not completed college and or have not learned how money works will think college is a great idea.
When you finally complete your bachelors degree, you will be stuck with the most debt out of the last two options and be at least two years behind the second fastest option.
The only benefit of a bachelor’s degree is having a higher credential to gain a job but even some jobs value experience more than a degree. So, someone with a certificate or associate’s degree can still be technically ahead of you.
As the previous options suggested, be sure to check the requirements of your desired job on an active posting with a site like Monster.com to ensure you need a bachelors degree to qualify. If you don’t need one, it is not recommended to go for it unless you want your life to be about your job.
