(Ford City, PA) Prospective students can explore BC3 @ Armstrong’s associate degree programs, and learn about the transferability of its credits and its affordability compared to other regional colleges and universities during a fall open house Oct. 13.
BC3 @ Armstrong’s open house is scheduled for 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. at 104 Armstrong St., Ford City, in the NexTier Adult Learning Center.
Attendees will be allowed to bring one guest because of BC3’s current health and safety guidelines.
BC3 is temporarily requiring face coverings to be worn indoors at all BC3 locations. Face coverings must be worn by all students, faculty, staff and visitors in shared spaces inside college facilities, including classrooms and communal spaces, regardless of vaccination status. Individuals with a medical exemption must provide proper documentation from a medical professional.
BC3 @ Armstrong will also waive the $25 application fee for prospective students who apply for enrollment at the open house. Prospective students can RSVP at apply.BC3.edu/open-house.
Prospective students attending the open house can explore transfer programs and instructional formats, tour classrooms and the facility, and review cost of attendance and financial aid options. They can also learn about support services and student activities and how BC3 has been ranked as the No. 1 community college in Pennsylvania six times since 2015, most recently for 2022 by Niche.com.
Niche.com, Pittsburgh, analyzed information from the U.S. Department of Education, from the Brookings Institution and from other sources in areas such as academics, value and professors in ranking BC3 first in its 2022 Best Community Colleges in Pennsylvania report.
BC3 @ Armstrong offers associate degrees in three transfer programs. BC3 @ Armstrong students can apply credits earned toward a bachelor’s degree at public, private and online four-year colleges and universities.
Approximately 71 percent of BC3 students this fall are enrolled in transfer programs.
Credits transfer to four-year institutions
BC3 @ Armstrong’s selection of two-year transfer programs features business administration, general studies and psychology. Students who complete a BC3 @ Armstrong degree in business administration or in psychology can transfer all credits to a parallel program and with junior standing to any Pennsylvania public four-year institution.
Students who complete a BC3 @ Armstrong degree in business administration, general studies and psychology can transfer all credits to a parallel program to any Penn State University commonwealth campus.
Students can also take most pre-nursing courses at BC3 @ Armstrong and finish their degree in Nursing, R.N., at BC3’s main campus. They can also take courses in social work, criminology and business management.
“I knew how cost-effective BC3 would be”
The BC3 Education Foundation in 2021-2022 will award more than $200,000 in named scholarships. Scholarships, financial aid and BC3’s affordability allowed 70 percent of BC3’s Class of 2021 to graduate debt-free.
Maggie Lewis, of Adrian, was among BC3 students who graduated debt-free in May.
Lewis earned an associate degree in psychology while attending BC3 @ Armstrong and an associate degree in communications while attending BC3’s other locations.
“I knew how cost-effective BC3 would be,” Lewis said.
Lewis, 21, was a member of Rho Phi, BC3’s chapter of Phi Theta Kappa, an international academic honor society for two-year colleges and programs. She was twice named to the president’s list and twice to the dean’s list at BC3 and graduated magna cum laude, an honor for those with a grade-point average of 3.5 to 3.74.
She is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in psychology through BC3’s bachelor’s degree-completion program with La Roche University in which classes are held on BC3’s main campus in Butler Township, through iTV or as a hybrid.
Lewis is recently engaged to be married and is seeking to purchase her first house, she said.
“Getting set up on my own,” she said. “Graduating debt-free from BC3 was really a great help because if I had to worry about student loans, that would not be good for other areas of my life.
“My friends, by comparison, are spending a lot more money and having to work a lot harder to stay afloat.”
The average student-loan debt for the Class of 2019 was $38,521 in Pennsylvania, according to an April 27 report in LendEDU, a website that provides comparisons for loans, credit cards and other financial products. Only student borrowers in New Hampshire and Connecticut were reported to have higher student-loan debt.
“My education at BC3 was excellent”
Tuition and fees for students from Armstrong County attending BC3 @ Armstrong this fall cost $275 per credit for a face-to-face class.
Tuition and fees for Pennsylvania students attending regional public four-year universities this fall cost between $437 and $504 per credit for a face-to-face class. Tuition and fees for Pennsylvania students attending regional state-related universities this fall cost between $572 and $1,170 per credit for a face-to-face class.
Approximately 83 percent of BC3’s credit classes this fall are face-to-face, about 14 percent are online and 3 percent are remote.
Online courses are delivered only online and at any time. Remote courses include video conferencing, email and Internet-based learning management system formats and are held at a specific time.
Students who achieve BC3 president’s list honors have attained a cumulative GPA of 3.75 or higher during a semester in which they have earned at least 12 credits. Students who achieve dean’s list honors, a cumulative GPA of 3.5 to 3.74.
Lewis plans to pursue a master’s degree and become a marriage and family counselor.
“My education at BC3,” she said, “was excellent. The faculty was just amazing and so helpful in every area. In all of my classes, my professors were so happy to work with me. It was such a positive experience.”
