Best Online Associate in Finance

Published: Jun 23, 2021
Updated: Sep 9, 2023

Find top-ranked online associate in finance degree programs to prepare students to pursue entry-level positions as financial or accounting clerks, billing specialists, bookkeepers, and credit counselors.

Top 10 Online Associate in Finance Degrees

University of Cincinnati
University of Alaska Fairbanks
Anne Arundel Community College
St. Petersburg College
Wilmington University
Hinds Community College
Middle Georgia State University
Rockland Community College
Davenport University
Bluegrass Community and Technical College

Middle Georgia State University 99%
Davenport University 98%
University of Cincinnati 85%
University of Alaska Fairbanks 65%

St. Petersburg College 23 to 1
Volunteer State Community College 22 to 1
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College 22 to 1
Rockland Community College 20 to 1
Nash Community College 20 to 1
University of Cincinnati 19 to 1
Middle Georgia State University 19 to 1
Harper College 18 to 1
Pitt Community College 18 to 1
Roane State Community College 18 to 1

Davenport University $20,964
Wilmington University $11,760
University of Cincinnati $10,099
Harper College $9,372
Prairie State College $8,610
Anne Arundel Community College $7,590
University of Alaska Fairbanks $7,296
Rockland Community College $5,212
Roane State Community College $4,326
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College $4,296

Davenport University $16,308
University of Cincinnati $13,224
University of Alaska Fairbanks $11,265
Wilmington University $9,000
Middle Georgia State University $3,582

Nash Community College
Wilson Community College
Johnston Community College
Fayetteville Technical Community College
Central Carolina Community College
Cleveland State Community College
Pitt Community College
Wayne Community College
Elizabethtown Community and Technical College
Roane State Community College

University of Alaska Fairbanks 65%
University of Cincinnati 85%
Davenport University 98%
Middle Georgia State University 99%

Johnston Community College 10 to 1
Prairie State College 10 to 1
University of Alaska Fairbanks 11 to 1
Wilson Community College 11 to 1
Wilmington University 12 to 1
Wayne Community College 12 to 1
Central Carolina Community College 13 to 1
Davenport University 13 to 1
Hinds Community College 15 to 1
Fayetteville Technical Community College 16 to 1

Pitt Community College $1,824
St. Petersburg College $1,943
Central Carolina Community College $2,432
Wilson Community College $2,432
Fayetteville Technical Community College $2,432
Johnston Community College $2,432
Wake Technical Community College $2,432
Wayne Community College $2,432
Nash Community College $2,600
Middle Georgia State University $2,728

Middle Georgia State University $3,582
Wilmington University $9,000
University of Alaska Fairbanks $11,265
University of Cincinnati $13,224
Davenport University $16,308

Key Takeaways

The associate degree in finance is an affordable way to get started on your college education. The typical associate degree will take about two years to complete.

Many community colleges and two-year schools offer both traditional and online degree programs for students pursuing their associate degree in finance.

Earning an online associate degree in finance can prepare you for a variety of entry level jobs in your field. Many students also continue into a bachelor’s degree program in finance or a related area.

Table of Contents

Featured Programs

Frequently Asked Questions About Finance Degrees

Why get an associate in finance?

The online associate degree in finance is an excellent starting point both for prospective students with an interest in the financial sector and for working professionals hoping to advance their foundational business education. Many community colleges offer both in-person and online associate degree programs in finance.

The online finance associate degree is a particularly good option for those who are already working in the financial sector but who wish to balance the pursuit of an associate program with existing workplace responsibilities.

At the associate degree level, finance students often have the option to earn either an Associate of Arts, Associate of Science, or Associate of Applied Science in Finance either online or in person.

What will I learn while getting an associate in finance?

Students completing the online finance associate degree will typically take both general education courses and core courses in finance such as financial markets, financial accounting, managerial accounting, financial planning, and financial analysis. The typical online associates program in finance will provide students with core skills like how to navigate financial markets, how to read and produce financial statements, and how to remain in compliance with financial regulations.

Most students can complete the 60-credit associate degree in finance program in about two years.

What can I do with an associate in finance?

This balance of topics makes the online finance associate degree a great fit for students seeking entry level opportunities as administrative assistants in corporate finance and financial planning as well as in clerical support roles for financial analysts. In order to become a certified financial planner or financial analyst, you would likely need to earn a bachelor’s degree in finance or a related area. Online finance degree programs at the associate level can provide an affordable starting point for your college education on the way to a four-year degree.

Prospective students who plan to transition into a bachelor’s degree program in finance, business administration or a related area should pay close attention to the accreditation status of their their online associate degree. Getting a finance associate degree online is a great option as long as it has received accreditation from the colleges and schools commission in your region. Any online associate finance programs you’re considering should have this stamp of approval if you hope to transfer into an accredited four-year college.

Students interested in working in international finance should also look for finance degree programs with recognition from an international accreditation council.

The associate degree could also be a great starting point on your way to a four-year program and a bachelor’s degree in finance or a related subject area.

Learn more about how to major in finance.

How do we determine the best finance associate degree programs?

Methodology

Pursuing your degree online doesn’t mean you need to settle for an inferior school. Today, most universities and colleges offer online degrees, and many respected schools are seeing significant growth in their numbers of online students.

The people affiliated with a school are ultimately what make it great. This is why influence — i.e., the academic impact of faculty and alumni associated with a school — gets at the heart of what is truly best in education. The combined influence score of a college or university’s top academic influencers is the best indicator of academic excellence. For our online degree rankings, we focus on the academic influence of faculty and alumni in the specific disciplines we’re ranking.

If you are serious about finding the best online colleges, you should be asking where the most influential professors are teaching, and whether their graduates themselves are advancing the school’s reputation for academic excellence. Most ranking sites rely on an opaque combination of reputation surveys and arbitrary performance metrics. Influence, as measured by our InfluenceRanking engine, provides a ranking that is free from bias, insulated from manipulation, and reflective of real-world educational outcomes.

An associate degree is a great way for many to start their educational journey, but you may want to also consider an online bachelor’s in finance.

Median Salaries of Similar Careers in the U.S.

The following graph depicts the average salaries of similar occupations to Financial and Investment Analysts in the U.S.

Source: U.S. BUREAU OF LABOR STATISTICS

Annual Salary

79940Insurance Underwriters

88030Credit Analysts

103020Financial and Investment Analysts

110610Financial Risk Specialists

119960Personal Financial Advisors

25 Best Online Associate in Finance Degree Programs

Online Finance and Accounting Programs Looking for You

Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

If this is your first time taking an online course, the experience may require a time of adjustment. Although you’ll typically learn the same material and take the same exams as your on-campus peers, going online will require greater independence and responsibility than going in person. You’ll be accountable for your own time management, for harnessing the online educational technology that you’ll need to use, and for completing the course requirements, such as listening to lectures, learning lessons, reading texts, and handing in assignments. This means you’ll need to create a suitable workspace for yourself, maintain a realistic schedule, and take the initiative in building relationships with your instructors and classmates. With online college, your goal is to find a balance between independence and engagement.

No. The only part of online education that’s easier than campus-based education is ease of access: all you need is a computer and an internet connection for online education. But even this seeming advantage of online education can be misleading: what’s easier, studying online with your computer and internet connection from your home where you need to cook, clean, pay rent, and maintain a job? Or studying on campus in a dorm where all your living needs are handled by the school, and college staff are there to help you every step of the way?

If you take the commute to campus out of the equation, campus-based education is easier. All the support structures available on campus for students, especially with real people to help you in person, are not there online. The demands on you as an online student will largely be the same as for your campus-based counterpart, but without the same helps.

In general, your online courses will present the same material and test you in the same way as traditional in-person courses. In many cases, you’ll even have the same instructors as your on-campus counterparts. In fact, if you are adjusting to the experience of independent learning with remote educational technology for the first time, online college may be considerably more challenging than campus-based college. For a few insights on how to manage this new online experience, check out our 10 Tips for Adjusting to School Online.

Accreditation is especially important when it comes to online college. This is because the online education landscape is a mix of highly-reputable non-profit institutions on the one end and less-than-reputable for-profit institutions on the other end. Accreditation gives you the power to identify the more reputable actors in online education. Accreditation is a stamp of approval from an independent accrediting agency indicating that a college or university is meeting standards of quality and credibility. School-wide accreditation falls into two major categories: regional and national accreditation. Regional accreditors generally hold jurisdiction only over schools in the states comprising their region, whereas national accreditors hold jurisdiction over schools in all states. Regional accreditation is widely regarded as a more rigorous standard of quality and credibility than national accreditation.

Attending a college or university that is not regionally accredited could limit your opportunities. For students seeking an online education, we strongly recommend that they opt for regionally accredited schools. Regional accreditation ensures eligibility for federal loans and grants, ensures your college credits can be transferred between schools, and ensures that your degree credits can be accepted if you wish to earn an advanced degree. For more on this important topic, check out our What is Accreditation and Why Does It Matter? College & University Accreditation Guide.

As long as your online college degree is regionally accredited (see the previous point), you should have little difficulty transferring most of your credits or credentials to another regionally accredited undergraduate school. Every school carries its own standards and procedures for granting a transfer of credits. In many cases, you will encounter some bureaucratic haggling in which some of your credits will be transferred and others may be refused. However, provided that you have attended an online school with recognized regional accreditation, you should be in good shape in transferring your credits earned online.

In most cases, as long you graduate from a well-regarded, regionally-accredited online college, prospective employers won’t look sideways at your degree. In fact, unless you attend an exclusively online college or university, there will likely be no specific indicator on your degree, transcript, or resumé differentiating your school from its brick-and-mortar counterpart. This means that your employer will likely only differentiate between an online and in-person degree if you mention this distinction.

Some employers may express the concern that because you did your degree online, you may need to transition from an online education experience to in-person workplace experience. But in an age of Covid, that concern seems much diminished. The fact is that much employment these days is remote. And collaboration increasingly happens online over Zoom. Many employers will therefore view your online degree as evidence of valuable 21st century professional skills such as independence, self-motivation, time management, and tech savvy.

If you are a student who thrives on the dynamic energy of in-person discussion, who requires the physical surroundings of a classroom to feel engaged, or who considers the social aspects of education to be of equal importance to the actual content of your courses, online education will be less than ideal for you (though depending on your circumstances, it may also be the only viable option).

While there is much in traditional campus-based education that can be substituted or simulated through the online medium, some students may find that there is nothing that can replace the conversation, collaboration, and motivation that occur in an actual in-person classroom setting. As you transition to online education, one of the biggest challenges you will likely face in getting the most out of your online classes is overcoming this difference between “real reality” and “virtual reality.” Fortunately, we’ve got some great Tips for Online Education Beginners.

The advantages of online classes are many. Above all, online courses give you the freedom and flexibility to attend class from anywhere that works for you, whether you’re at home, in a coffee shop, or in a quiet conference room at work. In many cases, you’ll also enjoy the convenience of asynchronous learning opportunities-educational experiences that you can complete at your own pace and on your own schedule. This may include pre-taped lectures, ongoing chat-board discussions, and 24/7 access to digital materials. And of course, just as there are some learners who prefer the energy of a live classroom, there are those who learn best when working in their own personal space, free from distractions. If this sounds like you, you might find the solitude of online learning to be a major advantage.

Whether you’re just getting started on your college search, you’re looking for survival tips on your way to a bachelor’s degree, or you’re preparing for the transition into grad school, we’ve got guides, how to’s and tons of other valuable resources to keep you moving forward in your educational journey.

Best Online Associate in Finance

Top 10 Online Associate in Finance Degrees

Key Takeaways

Featured Programs

Frequently Asked Questions About Finance Degrees

Why get an associate in finance?

What will I learn while getting an associate in finance?

What can I do with an associate in finance?

Median Salaries of Similar Careers in the U.S.

25 Best Online Associate in Finance Degree Programs

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Online Finance and Accounting Programs Looking for You

Online Degree Frequently Asked Questions

What can I expect from an online college course?+

Is online college easier than campus-based college?+

Why does accreditation matter in online college?+

Will I be able to transfer my online college degree?+

Will employers respect my online degree?+

What are the disadvantages of online classes?+

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Resources for Online College-Bound Students

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