The Associate in Arts Program in is intended for students interested in pursuing a four-year bachelor’s degree. Programs of study leading to the AA degree consist of a common core of General Education courses, specific program requirements (if applicable), and elective courses. Students may complete only one AA degree. Those already holding associate in arts or baccalaureate degrees are not eligible to enroll in an AA degree program.

The program requirements to enter specific majors within the State University System are quite varied. Each student is encouraged to declare an upper-division major when enrolling at Polk State College, and then he or she should follow the state-prescribed advising track for that major. The student should meet with an advisor to assist in selecting both General Education core courses and recommended electives for the selected advising track to prepare for a chosen upper-division major. All advising tracks lead to an Associate in Arts degree in Liberal Arts.

Although the State articulation agreement assures transferability of the AA degree into the State University System, specific prerequisite courses for intended majors must be taken at Polk State in order to avoid course or credit deficiencies after admission to a university. Students should refer to the section on Advising Tracks for more information.

The AA degree requires a General Education component of 36 credit hours plus 24 other credit hours, for a total of 60 credits. The public universities and colleges in Florida agree that once students are certified by Polk State as having completed the General Education requirements, no further General Education courses are required of them when they transfer.

Some courses designed for use in AS programs are not used in AA degree programs. AA students should not take these courses and should consult with an advisor prior to registration to avoid taking unnecessary or inapplicable courses.

Associate in Arts Degree Advising Tracks

The following is a list of AA advising tracks for which specific plans have been developed by Polk State College on the basis of information provided by the Florida State University System. All Polk State College advising tracks lead to an Associate in Arts degree in Liberal Arts.  Advisors have information from all public Florida universities on every program offered. This information can assist students when using the facts.org website to find program requirements and when tracking progress to graduation with the degree audits found at www.facts.org. Current Polk State College students may also view degree audits through the College’s portal, PASSPORT, at www.polk.edu.

A bachelor’s degree is required in a field of interest for the following majors: Pre-Dental, Pre-Law, Pre-Medical, and Pre-Veterinarian. A student may take pre-admission requirements for these programs at Polk State College.