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Synonyms

associate's degree

American  
[uh-soh-shee-its di-gree] / əˈsoʊ ʃi ɪts dɪˈgri /

noun

  • associate's degrees
    plural
  1. a degree awarded by a junior or community college after completion of two years of study.


Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

Etymology

Origin of associate's degree

First recorded in 1940–45

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

She spent some time raising her daughter and began commuting to Charlotte, N.C., a few nights a week to take college classes, earning her associate’s degree.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 27, 2025

Abraham, who’s 34 years old, recently earned an associate’s degree from the College of Southern Maryland in the applied science of Homeland Security.

From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2025

Today, Jaden has nearly completed an associate’s degree in applied science and wants to one day become a physical therapist, inspired in part by his own experience with years of physical therapy.

From Salon ● Dec. 31, 2023

The rapper earned an associate’s degree while in prison and facilitated violence prevention and sobriety counseling programs, while also participating in a variety of educational and rehabilitative classes, according to Hochul’s office.

From Seattle Times ● Dec. 23, 2023

Meanwhile, during the day, I got an associate’s degree from Onondaga Community College and began work on a degree in public policy at Syracuse University.

From "Lost Boy, Lost Girl" by John Bul Dau

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