Dive Brief:
- A community college in Spokane, WA, will offer four-year degrees as part of a state plan to boost graduates in computer-related fields with good job prospects.
- The Spokane Falls Community College is starting a four-year applied science degree program that will begin accepting students this fall, the Spokesman-Review reported.
- Washington created the option for community colleges to offer applied science bachelor’s degree programs three years ago, and the Spokane college just won the required approval for its program.
Dive Insight:
To win approval for a four-year degree program, a community college in the state has to show that the proposed degree isn’t available from a nearby public university and that it will be accepted by universities offering master’s degrees in the field. Students who graduate from the Spokane Falls program will be qualified for network and computer systems administrator jobs, and positions as information security analysts, data specialists, and network support specialists — fields with a projected increase in demand for workers.
Of course, these programs are also facing increasing competition from non- and for-profit competitors offering alternative credentials, which are growing in popularity, to workers who want to boost their STEM skills. Aside from coding schools and "bootcamps," there are also companies like Lynda.com, online learning marketplace Udemy, and Sebastian Thrun's former MOOC provider, Udacity.