Associate degrees typically consist of 60 course hours of instruction, though they may be longer or shorter. There are three categories of courses included in an associate degree program: general education requirements, selected major requirements and chosen electives. Students on either an Associate in Arts or an Associate in Science degree track must complete courses in some form of written English communication. Course selection in each area should support the selected major, though there is some room for students to pursue personal interests.
Arts degrees and science degrees differ, even when the major concentration is the same. Arts degrees generally assume that the student will go on to complete a bachelor's degree. Science degrees may also serve as the basis of a baccalaureate, but are more practical in nature. In general, the arts programs include more credits in the humanities, while science programs reduce the humanities requirement and increase the technical courses.
It is instructive to compare an arts degree program and a science degree program in the same major, at the same school. Florida's Miami Dade College offers several such comparisons, one being the respective degrees in business administration. The general education requirements for an Associate of Arts in business administration include six credits in written and three credits in oral communications; six credits each in the humanities, behavioral/social sciences, mathematics and natural sciences; and three credits in general education electives. The remaining credits must include one course in computer competency, in addition to the required business courses.
At Miami Dade College, to continue that school as an example for purposes of discussion, the Associate in Science degree in business administration is structured somewhat different from the Associate in Arts. The communications requirements are the same, but you only need three credits in the humanities and behavioral/social sciences. On the other hand, you need nine credits in business-oriented mathematics. Major requirements include three credits each in accounting and business law, and the remaining 34 credits are made up from a group of courses that includes accounting, economics, management and statistics.