Completion Week
What is Completion Week?
The 37 State University of New York (SUNY)
and City University of New York (CUNY)
community colleges have set aside the first full week of October to send a simple
message: Students who complete
an associate degree have better prospects for jobs,
scholarships and transfer to four-year schools.
Community colleges statewide will hold special
events, workshops, guest lectures and counseling
sessions to help students understand how
completing a degree can change their lives,
change their communities and change the nation.
Why Community Colleges?
- About half of all undergraduate students in the country attend community colleges.
- Nearly one million "middle-skill" job openings - positions that require more than a high school diploma, but less than a four-year degree - are projected for New York state by 2018.
Why Complete?
- Students who complete an associates degree can expect to earn $400,000 more in a lifetime than a high school graduate.
- Unemployment for community college graduates is typically 30 percent lower than for high school graduates
- New York residents who transfer directly from a SUNY or CUNY two-year college with an associates degree are guaranteed entry to a four-year SUNY college.
- the nation needs more college graduates to stay competitive. The United States used to lead the world in the percentage of 25- to 34-year-olds with college degrees. Now it ranks 12th among 36 developed nations.