The Associate of Applied Science (AAS) degree is awarded to students in career technical programs who meet the requirements listed below. Many career technical programs require more than 90 credits for an associate's degree.
The Associate of Applied Science is awarded to students who meet the following:
1. Associate Degree Comprehensive Requirements
2. Associate of Applied Science Requirements:
a.The final 16 credits that apply to the degree must include at least eight credits at OCCC that apply to the specific program requirements, excluding courses used solely for the General Education requirements. Students may apply to the department chair for an exception to this requirement if they can demonstrate currency in the field. All candidates must earn 24 credits from OCCC that apply to the specific program requirements excluding courses used solely for the General Education requirements. See specific program requirements in the Catalog.
b. General Education Requirements:Students must earn a minimum of 16 credits of General Education taken from the General Education Distribution/Discipline Studies List. These credits must come from courses taken in the following categories:
Arts and Letters
Social Sciences
Science/Math/Computer Science
The 16 credits must include at least one course with a minimum of 3 credits from each category. No more than two courses may come from courses required by specific programs. Because of these restrictions, it is possible a course is acceptable as General Education for some students while it is not acceptable for others. Students should consult an advisor or faculty member in an Associate of Applied Science degree program for advice on General Education courses appropriate to their goals and interests. General Education requirements will be waived for students who enroll at OCCC with an AA, AAS, AGS, AS, BA, BS degree or higher from a regionally-accredited United States institution or foreign equivalent. Program-specific General Education requirements for some AAS degrees will not necessarily be waived. Students should consult the Career/Technical program department for specific courses required for General Education.
c. OCCC Basic Competency Requirements for Writing and Math in the AAS Degree:
Writing:Competency in writing must be demonstrated by either:
Completing WR 121 with a C or better, or
Passing a lower division collegiate* writing course for which WR 121 is a prerequisite with a C or better
Students with AA, AAS, AGS, AS, BA, BS degrees or higher from a U.S. regionally- accredited institution will have the basic competency in writing (WR 121) waived. Other writing requirements specified by the program remain in effect.
Math:Competency in mathematics or computation must be demonstrated by:
Completing with a grade of C or P or better MTH 58, MTH 63 or MTH 65, or
Passing the OCCC Competency Exam for MTH 65, or
Completing with a grade of C or P or better a MTH course (minimum 3 credits) for which MTH 58, MTH 63 or MTH 65 or higher-level math skills are a prerequisite, or
Completing with a grade of C or P or better a career-technical computation course of 3 or more credits that aligns with and supports the program goals or intended outcomes, or
Completing with a grade of C or P or better all courses that comprise 90 hours of embedded related instruction in computation that aligns with and supports the program goals or intended outcomes.
a) Program Requirements:All AAS candidates must complete a program of approved course work in the major field. The Programs and Disciplines section of the catalog contains these course work requirements. No more than 3 credits (100- level and above) in physical education (PE) may be applied to an AAS degree unless specifically required by the program.
* See the Course Descriptions in OCCC Catalog for a complete list.