Designing a 3-year degree is not simply a matter of reducing the number of credits required for a bachelor’s, or compressing an existing 120-credit degree. Crafting a shorter degree provides the opportunity for more intentional, cross-disciplinary curriculum design. By creating a cohesive learning experience, colleges can streamline requirements, cut redundancy, and deliver the essential skills and knowledge students need to succeed.

A reimagined 3-year degree is not a shortcut, it holds the potential to be  a better route, supporting the success of more students. It is an opportunity for thoughtful redesign of the curriculum, embedding evidence-based practices such as internships, research opportunities, learning cohorts, and the active learning that we know improves educational quality and completion rates.  

On campuses across the country, faculty teams begin designing their 3-year programs by starting with the learning outcomes that the degree seeks to achieve, developing and sequencing learning experiences that align with these outcomes. These programs have different features.  They may build on students’ prior learning;  use a competency-based approach;  create new and different courses; work with industry partners;  use block scheduling; offer stacked credentials. Some institutions are building pathways to master’s programs from their 3-year degrees, creating “3+1” or +”3+2” programs. All the College-in-3 campuses want to keep learning what works, so rigorous assessment is part of the process.