Associate’s Degree: Prepare for your Desired Profession

An Associate’s degree is an academic degree that is usually awarded through community colleges, junior colleges and some four-year colleges and universities. To get an associates degree at most colleges, you need to at least 60 undergraduate credit hours.

On average, if you take classes full-time, you can earn your associates degrees in about two-years. However, part-time students enjoy are quite flexible with online classes and have a broad selection of classes that they require to complete their program of study. There are two main types of associate’s degrees: Those that prepare you for your professional degree and those that you can use to earn your four-year degree as transfer courses. The second type helps you work toward your general education (Gen. Ed.) courses or foundational coursework. Typically, programs are made up of general education requirements, major requirements, and electives. Full time study is equal to 4 semesters or 15 semester credit hours. Some accelerated distance two-year programs are also available online and most associate degrees online have many of the same requirements as on-campus or in-classroom courses.

Two-year virtual learning is available in business, liberal arts, and other disciplines. Many associate degrees online will accept transfer credits from two-year programs. Some areas of study within associate degrees online are: Accounting, Arts and Humanities Business & Management, Criminal Justice, Design, Early Childhood Development, Education, Engineering, Computers and Technology, Graphic Design, Health Sciences, Hospitality Management, Human Resources Management, Law and Paralegal, Marketing, Social Sciences, and Telecommunications to mention a few.

General education courses are an integral part of most associate degrees online and include coursework in Communication, Natural Sciences/Mathematics, Humanities, and Social Science. You can earn an Associate in Arts (A.A.) degree program, an Associate in Science (A.S.) degree program or an Associate in Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree programs depending on whether you pursue arts or science track.

Occupational and professional Associate’s degrees allow graduates to get entry level positions in areas such as computer programming, criminal justice, graphic design, paralegal areas, nursing, and medical assistant. Thus, associate degrees offer a flexible platform for quick entry into many professions.

Generally, you will be required to have a high school diploma or GED. You also need a good GPA and some schools may want to see your SAT or ACT scores. Other colleges will accept relevant work experience in lieu of a diploma to qualify the student for entry.

As many working adults continue to enroll in college, there is a growing demand for online degree programs. You can research many of these schools online. Many have great programs and they give students the option to apply for financial aid and scholarships.

Article Source: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/associates-degree-prepare-for-your-desired-profession.html
Author: Sophia Peters

Travel Jobs - Jobs In Travel Industry

The job market is flooded with varied opportunities that are not necessarily restricted to a particular field or domain. We are all in an era where you have the advantage of pursuing your favorite hobby as a serious career option and at the same time, be successful pursuing it and most importantly, earn a substantial income. It could be anything from photography, modeling to something as exciting and interesting as travel!

Traveling is something that all of us enjoy and we would all love to holiday and travel all the time. However, at the end of a good holiday we all need to get back to the rigmarole of a desk job.

However, if you are someone who feels tied down in a desk job, and loves to meet new people and learn about different countries, their culture and lifestyle, a career in the travel industry is a blessing in disguise. Anyone who enjoys sales, are customer-oriented and loves to travel can be assured of a successful career in the travel industry. At all functional levels, the nature of work involves directly dealing and interacting with people from different strata, temperaments and preferences.

In the travel industry, work essentially comprises of providing exemplary services for people who are away from home, on business or on holidays, which can further be classified into purely business travel or leisure travel including package tours, pilgrim travel, and adventure trips and so on. Essentially, if you want to succeed in the travel industry, you must love people, places and of course, travel!

Career Options

The travel industry has a wide expanse including numerous associated service industries that work in tandem with the Government tourism departments, Immigration and customs services, travel agencies, airlines, tour operators among many others. Other related industries that thrive on travel and tourism are hotels, airlines and travel agencies who facilitate the process of traveling from one city or country to another a pleasure. Make an informed decision and choose the right profession based on your personality traits and qualification:

• If you have entrepreneurial capabilities, you can venture into business by starting a travel agency or run conducted tours

• If you have an attractive personality, are physically fit and have the stamina to work at unearthly hours you can work as a flight steward or stewardess or work as a ground staff in the airline industry, considered one of the most glamorous profession next to modeling

• If you have loads of patience, are self disciplined, have an eye for detail and have a good aesthetic sense, a career in the hospitality industry such as hotels would be ideal

• Develop your travel career by qualifying yourself with the Fares and Ticketing courses available that cover industry terminology, procedures, fares and ticketing completion to IATA standards

• If you are a linguist with a quick grasp and command over different languages, it adds a feather to your cap and helps you build a good rapport with different kinds of people you interact with during the course of your work

• A successful travel professional must be skilled marketers in addition to savvy travel planning

• Certain pre requisites include prior experience in service, sales or marketing, considerable travel experience, cross cultural awareness and computer skills are increasingly becoming essential

The travel industry is well known for swiftly promoting exceptionally good individuals through its ranks. The travel industry’s projected growth facilitates this trend of above average advancement which will continue for a long time to come. The various perks offered by the travel industry outweigh the challenges. Is there any industry that offers a vibrant work atmosphere, glamorous lifestyles and an opportunity to travel across the world?

So go ahead and have a fruitful career in the travel industry. Make use of the various avenues available to you today and the travel industry is definitely worth the effort!This is your big chance to turn your passion into a lifetime career option.

Article Source: http://www.buzzle.com/articles/travel-jobs-jobs-in-travel-industry.html
Author: Janani Rajagopal