Why a 3 Year Degree Program?

We realize that many families are concerned about their ability to fund an undergraduate degree program given the current state of the economy and the mid-term economic outlook. California public universities are now saying that an entering student should expect to take at least five years (or more likely six+ years) to complete his/her bachelor’s degree.

At the same time, California community colleges, where many students are turning to help curtail the cost of higher education, face a dilemma. They expect record enrollments this fall, but must significantly cut back on the number of classes they are offering because of budget reductions. That’s a bad combination.

The Master’s College has a solution. As we’ve brainstormed ways to serve and support the church by offering cost-effective options for Christian young people pursuing their bachelor’s degrees, we realized something important. It is possible for an academically capable individual who has a definite idea of his/her major to complete most of our bachelor’s degree programs in three years from high school graduation.

Here’s how the program works:

Most of TMC's undergraduate majors require between 122 and 140 semester units of coursework to complete. The College has developed a Distance Education Extension Program (DEEP) to enable students to complete up to 60 units of their general education coursework. You can take these courses during your senior year in high school, and during summers while living at home, and working a summer job.

Here's one example of how you could combine our DEEP courses and on-campus courses to finish a bachelor's degree in three years following high school graduation:

• 6 units - Senior year of high school (one DEEP course per semester)
  
• 6 units - Summer after high school graduation (two DEEP courses)
  
• 34 units - First year at TMC (average 17 units per semester)
• 9 units - Summer after 1st year at TMC (three DEEP courses)
  
• 34 units - Second year at TMC (average 17 units per semester)
• 9 units - Summer after 2nd year at TMC (three DEEP courses)
  
• 34 units - Third year at TMC (average 17 units per semester)
• 
  132 units can be earned within 3 years of high school graduation
  

This is just an example, but it illustrates how your degree program could work. You should know that 37 of TMC's 52 undergraduate major/emphases programs require 132 units or less to complete. In fact, only the eight Bachelor of Music (B.M.) degree programs require over 145 units.

Learn More

Click here to see three-year to completion schedules for most of our BA and BS degree programs.

We’ve also developed a sample financial case study to give an idea of how much a person might save using this approach to completing his/her bachelor’s degree.

Click here for answers to the most Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) about this program.