Online Associate’s Degrees Available from Iowa Lakes Community College
Iowa Lakes Community College appears in our ranking of the 20 Best Colleges for an Online Associates Degree.
More than 800 of the students attending Iowa Lakes Community College take at least one class every year. Some of those students choose to complete their degrees online too. They can choose between Associate of Arts (AA) and Associate of Science (AS) programs designed for transfer students. Each program helps students complete the general education requirements found in a bachelor’s degree program and include courses that transfer to schools across the country. They need to take a minimum of 64 credits before they can transfer.
In the AA program, students take 10 credits of communication classes, five credits of math courses and eight credits of science classes. They’ll also take units of computer science, social science and humanities courses such as History of American Music, Introduction to Theater, Young Adult Literature, and Philosophy of Religion. The AS program includes a minimum of 20 credits of math and science classes. Students can take Calculus I-III, Finite Math, College Algebra and College Trigonometry. Contemporary Global Issues, Minority Group Relations, Mass Media, Introduction to Political Science and Psychology of Adjustment are some of the social science courses they can take.
Students who want to work after leaving the college can enroll in an online Associate of Applied Science (AAS) program. The college offers more than 30 majors and fields of study for those students. In the digital, social and broadcast productions program, students look at how news studios and others create productions that people watch on television and their computers. They have the chance to create video productions and edit their work. The game design and development program prepares students for producing and creating video and mobile games. They learn the languages and software used in the development of those games and create a final project in the form of a playable game.
The hotel and restaurant management major is popular among students who want to work in the hospitality industry. Online students can do internships for credit in local restaurants and hotels close to where they live. They’ll also take classes on running and managing the operations of a business, hiring new workers and handling the needs of customers. In the paralegal studies program, the college helps students become qualified legal assistants through courses such as Civil Litigation and Legal Research. AAS students can also choose majors in graphic design and technology, web development and design, engineering technology and agribusiness.
About Iowa Lakes Community College
Iowa Lakes Community College is a community college located in the third district in Iowa. Established in 1966, it is one of the main community colleges in the state responsible for serving the needs of students living in rural areas. It has a main campus in Estherville, which is part of the Iowa Lakes region. Several satellite campuses are located in smaller areas, including Spencer and Spirit Lake. Students can join any of the athletic teams that compete under the Lakers’ name, including the men’s basketball and wrestling teams and the women’s golf and volleyball teams. Also known as ILCC, the college has vocational training programs in HVAC and refrigeration repair as well as full degree programs. As a member of the American Association of Community Colleges, ILCC offers opportunities for high school and transfer students too.
Iowa Lakes Community College Accreditation Details
ILCC students can take the credits they earned from the college to a bachelor’s program offered by another school because this college has regional accreditation. That accreditation also allows any student who cannot afford their tuition and fees to use the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) to get a financial aid package. The college’s regional accreditation comes from the Higher Learning Commission (HLC). ILCC also has accreditation from the Iowa Department of Education.
Iowa Lakes Community College Application Requirements
Iowa Lakes Community College encourages students to spend a day on its campus in Iowa Lakes. This allows them to tour the facilities and see where they’ll take classes and do other things. Once they finish a campus tour and check out the residence halls, they can meet with an enrollment coach who will guide them through the application process. Students also have the option of applying online without taking a campus tour. The college asks students to establish their residency to qualify for the in-state tuition rate. This might require a driver’s license, voter registration card, utility bills or other official documents that show they have an address in the state.
Incoming students can apply online and create accounts that let them work on the application and save their progress. They can then submit their high school transcripts or a GED certificate and provide standardized test scores if they have them. This helps ILCC determine where to place students in certain classes. Those who do not provide a test score will need to take a placement test on-campus. Students can take the exam anytime before the next semester begins.
Tuition and Financial Aid
ILCC offers an affordable option for students who want to spend less on a bachelor’s degree. They can spend two years at the college before moving to another school to finish their degrees. Iowa residents pay only $183 per credit hour, which increases to $188 per credit hour for residents of Minnesota. Students from outside of these two states will pay $194 per credit hour. The college also charges three fees that come to $22.25 per credit hour and a $25 fee for students who want to set up a payment plan. They can use payment plans in combination with their financial aid.
With financial aid, students can significantly reduce what they owe to attend college. They can qualify for loans that they’ll make small payments on after they graduate and aid that doesn’t require repayment. Before looking at loans, ILCC encourages students to consider grants, work-study, and scholarships. With work-study, they can work for companies that are close to the campus or for the college itself. Their grants and scholarships might include institutional aid and programs offered by the state and/or federal government. Depending on their overall merit and need, some students may qualify for more than one scholarship. All of the online associate’s degree programs from Iowa Lakes Community College offer financial aid opportunities for students.
