Mar 19, 2024  
2021-2022 Undergraduate Catalog 
    
2021-2022 Undergraduate Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

Associate in Arts Program


A Professor in the Associate in Arts Program lectures to engaged students

Telephone: (302) 831-3020

http://aap.udel.edu

Faculty Listing: https://www.aap.udel.edu/people/faculty

The Associate in Arts Program is offered as the result of a unique partnership between the University of Delaware and Delaware Technical and Community College. Delaware Technical and Community College provides classrooms and other facilities to enable the University to bring its teaching resources to locations throughout the state. The Associate in Arts degree is a UD degree, and the courses for the Associate in Arts degree are UD courses which appear on a UD transcript, though the physical location of the classrooms is at Delaware Technical and Community College. In Wilmington, courses are also offered at the UD Downtown Center.  UD faculty provide the course instruction, and UD staff provide academic support, including on-site academic advisement, tutoring, skills enhancement, and other services. The goal is to bring the best of both institutions to serve the educational needs of Delaware residents.

Associate in Arts Program students receive UD identification cards and UD computer accounts, enabling them to use UD academic, cultural, and recreational privileges. For example, Associate in Arts Program students can use the Morris Library or the Bob Carpenter Sports Center in Newark; they can join UD’s registered student organizations; and they qualify for student rates at UD theatre, music, or art events. At the same time, Associate in Arts Program students carry Delaware Tech identification cards, entitling them to use Delaware Technical and Community College facilities and participate in Delaware Tech events.

Benefits Of The Associate In Arts Program

The Associate in Arts Program has been designed to prepare students for the completion of a rigorous academic program, by building academic strengths and skills in a supportive small-campus environment. Program participants will receive academic advisement and assistance from faculty advisors and professional advisors at their campus. Academic advisors at the UD Academic Centers in Dover, Georgetown, and Wilmington will assist the transition of Associate in Arts Program students to the Newark campus for completion of a bachelor’s degree.

The distinctive features of the Associate in Arts Program are:

  • Small class sizes
  • Close faculty contact
  • Enhanced academic support
  • Curriculum structured to support decisions about appropriate majors
  • Focus on the traditional liberal arts (history, English, geography, and other related areas) - the broad education most in demand by employers
  • Freshman Seminar in the first semester
  • Tuition substantially lower than UD Newark campus tuition
  • Eligibility for free tuition through Delaware SEED Scholarships

The Associate in Arts Program is designed for students UD believes would benefit from additional support, including small classes, individualized attention, and a structured curriculum before relocating to the Newark campus. As a non-residential program, tuition is reduced and students may also qualify for the State of Delaware SEED Scholarship. The lower tuition and the eligibility for a SEED scholarship apply only to students who enroll in the Associate in Arts Program. Therefore, if you take advantage of the lower tuition or a SEED scholarship, please realize that you must be willing to spend two full years in the program and to complete an associate degree before you will be permitted to enroll on the Newark campus.

The Associate In Arts Curriculum

The Associate in Arts degree curriculum  is designed to provide students broad skills important for future success, including critical thinking, reading, reasoning and analysis, mathematics, and elementary foreign language skills. The curriculum enables students to explore the various traditional disciplines of the liberal arts. The Associate in Arts Program courses serve three purposes at once: the courses fulfill the requirements for the associate in arts  degree; the courses fulfill the majority of the breadth requirements for the bachelor’s degree; and some courses serve as the entry-level courses for intended majors. The Associate in Arts degree requires the successful completion of 60 credit hours of approved academic work with a minimum grade point index of 2.0.

Dual Admissions Program: The UD Associate in Arts Program and The Margaret H. Rollins School of Nursing

The UD Associate in Arts Program and Beebe Healthcare’s Margaret H. Rollins School of Nursing​ in Lewes, Del., have partnered to offer an exciting new joint education program beginning in fall 2017.

This three-year program offers students the chance to simultaneously earn an associate in arts degree from UD and a diploma in professional nursing from Rollins, which is the only hospital-based nursing program in Delaware. Ultimately, students can go on to earn their baccalaureate degree. 

New high-school graduates may be eligible for Student Excellence Equals Degree (SEED) funding during the first year of the program. To qualify for admission, students must have graduated from high school with a minimum grade point average of 2.75 and earned grades of at least B- in biology and chemistry. Other forms of financial aid and scholarships are available for students not eligible for SEED.

After successful completion of the program, students who have a minimum GPA of 2.5 and have also passed the National Council Licensure Examination (NCLEX) may apply to the University of Delaware’s baccalaureate program for the registered nurse (BRN). Admission to the BRN requires a separate application and is based on the number of available seats. Successful completion of the one-year, online BRN program culminates with the awarding of the bachelor of science in nursing (BSN) degree.​​ Students interested in continuing their education may continue on to a master of science in nursing​ (MSN) degree.

For more information, visit: https://www.aap.udel.edu/beebe/about

Continuing Toward The Bachelor’s Degree In Newark

Associate in Arts Program students who complete the required courses for the associate in arts degree with a minimum GPA of 2.0 are guaranteed  the opportunity to study toward a bachelor’s degree at the University’s campus in Newark, and may choose from any of the 150+ undergraduate majors and 100 minors that are offered. A formal transfer of credit application is not required for associate in arts degree recipients - they are already UD students, and need merely to submit an internal change of major form.

Students are considered “undeclared” while in the Associate in Arts Program and will be able to officially declare a major in their last semester of associate-degree study.  While in the AAP, students can select a specific Interest Area based upon their intended major. Students may choose one of eight Interest Areas upon which to focus their beginning course work:

  • Arts & Humanities
  • Business-Related
  • Elementary & Early Childhood Education
  • Environmental Studies
  • Life & Health Sciences
  • Physical & Applied Sciences
  • Social Sciences
  • University Studies (undeclared)

The actual process of adding the bachelor’s degree major depends on the major. Many majors can be completed in just two years upon relocation to Newark, while others will take longer based on necessary course sequencing. These majors can be declared as long as the student meets the minimum requirements, generally a 2.0 grade point average. Still other majors are selective and use a competitive admissions process. Associate in Arts Program graduates compete for seats in these majors on equal footing with students from the Newark campus. Some majors may have course prerequisites for entry, or require a specific grade point average, portfolio, or audition. More information about majors and major restrictions is available from the Registrar’s Office​.

Students admitted to the Associate in Arts Program are required to complete the entire two-year, sixty-credit sequence before moving to Newark to complete a bachelor’s degree. Students are expected to work closely with their advisor each semester in order to complete the program in a timely manner and to prepare for their intended bachelor’s degree program.

Associate in Arts Requirements