Source: IPEDS, as of September 29, 2026. Cost is resident tuition plus required fees, 2023-24.
Associate Degrees in Utah
8
Meet the Ranking Threshold
8
Median Resident Tuition and Fees
$6,172
With a Fully Online Option
5
General Studies Associate Degrees in Utah
Utah's eight general studies associate degrees are all ranked, and they're big: five of them award 804 or more degrees a year, and the whole list is public except Ensign College in Salt Lake City. Five of the eight are at state universities rather than two-year colleges. Southern Utah University in Cedar City has the top score at 79.6, 10th in the national associate ranking, on 1,730 degrees a year, a 61% graduation rate, $6,770 in resident tuition and required fees for 2023-24 and a fully online option.
Ensign College is second at 77.8 with the lowest tuition and fees on the list, $3,888, and a 43% graduation rate on 219 degrees a year. Snow College in Ephraim scores 76.8 at $4,564 with a 46% graduation rate, Utah State University in Logan 74.5 on a 59% graduation rate, and Weber State University in Ogden 73 on 1,484 degrees a year. Utah Valley University awards 1,321 degrees a year and scores 72.4, Utah Tech University awards 826 and scores 63.8, and Salt Lake Community College awards 804 and scores 59.9.
Tuition and fees across the eight run from $3,888 at Ensign to $8,305 at Utah State, and graduation rates from 61% at Southern Utah to 29% at Salt Lake. The two with the highest completion rates, Southern Utah and Utah State, are also the two priciest, while the three lowest-priced, Ensign, Salt Lake and Snow, graduate 43%, 29% and 46%.
The 8 Best General Studies Associate Degrees in Utah
The best general studies associate degrees in Utah are ranked below by their national score, from the national associate degree ranking. The number on each card is the program's place in Utah. Each needed at least 10 graduates in the latest year to be ranked.
1
Southern Utah University
General Studies (AA/AS)
Utah
79.6- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 61%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $6,770 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 1,730
About the Program
The Associate of Arts option adds a language requirement. The Associate of Arts option requires 8 credits of one foreign language beyond the 1010 level, so pick it if you want language study on your record and have room for it in your 60 credit hours. General education takes 28 or more credits, split into 12 or more of core courses and 16 or more across breadth areas.
Transfer credit can carry part of this degree, but not all of it. You need a minimum of 60 credit hours, and a minimum of 24 credits must be completed through SUU. Your grades are checked twice if you transfer in, because you need a 2.0 cumulative GPA on the work you complete at SUU and a 2.0 on your combined SUU and transfer record.
2
Ensign College
Utah
77.8- Private nonprofit
- College graduation rate
- 43%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $3,888 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 219
About the Program
Based in Salt Lake City, Utah, Ensign College is a private nonprofit college with 7,594 students on its rolls. The program's last federal report shows 219 associate's degrees conferred, so it is larger than 77 in every 100 programs measured here. Of the students who start at Ensign College, 43% graduate, and that beats 74 in every 100 institutions on this measure. Tuition and fees hold at $3,888 a year whichever state you come from. What lifts it most is price, where it reaches the 84th percentile.
3
Snow College
General Education, Associate of Arts (AA) and Associate of Science (AS)
Utah
76.8- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 46%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $4,564 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 238
About the Program
Choosing between the AS and the AA comes down to language study. Both versions of the General Education degree run 60 credits in total, but the AA asks you to spend some of those credits on the foreign language requirement. You can't collect both, because the college won't award two general associate degrees, so decide early which version you want.
General education fills at least 27 of the sixty credits, and those have to be specific general education credits, so general education is a floor inside the degree and not the whole of it. An American Institutions GE class sits among the required classes. If you started under an earlier catalog, the college says the changes shouldn't hurt you, because the associate degree requirements were lowered and no requirements were added.
Exam credit has a limit here that's easy to miss. You need 15 resident credits earned at the college, and credits from AP, CLEP, PLA or credit by exam don't count toward that residency, so they can't stand in for credits earned at the college itself. You have 3 years under your catalog to finish the associate degree. When you move on, the college has agreements with each school in Utah.
4
Utah State University
General Studies - AS, AA
Utah
74.5- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 59%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $8,305 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 767
About the Program
Your course of study here is personal, drawing on multiple departments, programs and colleges, so the degree is defined by what you put in it. Advisors work with you to design an individualized semester-by-semester plan that builds on your goals and experiences. You can take the degree at the Logan campus, at statewide campuses or through USU Online, which means you choose the setting as well as the courses.
Graduation requires a minimum 2.0 GPA, a total of 60 or more credits, and at least 20 USU credits. That last one limits what you can bring in, so transfer credit can't cover the whole degree. Most associate degrees at USU Eastern and USU Blanding are open without a minimum high school GPA or an ACT/SAT result.
5
Weber State University
Associate of Arts in General Studies / Associate of Science in General Studies
Utah
73.0- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 46%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $6,391 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 1,484
About the Program
General education is what this associate degree settles, because finishing it lets you lock in your general education requirements for a wide range of Weber State bachelor's degrees. You study the humanities and creative arts, social sciences, and physical and life sciences, and build skills in computer and information literacy, math and writing. So you can clear the general requirements first and choose among a wide range of Weber State bachelor's majors afterward.
Both an Associate of Arts and an Associate of Science are offered in general studies, and the degree can be earned entirely online. If you later transfer to another Utah public university, the degree fulfills general education requirements for bachelor's degrees there. So if you aren't sure where you'll finish, the general education work carries to a wide range of Weber State bachelor's degrees and to other Utah public universities.
Holding the associate degree can help when you apply to a bachelor's, because many competitive bachelor's degree programs award extra points toward admission to applicants who already have one. If you stop at the associate degree, the college says you're qualified to pursue entry-level positions that require a general education foundation. So the degree works two ways, as a step into a bachelor's or as a finished degree for a first job.
6
Utah Valley University
Utah
72.4- Public
- College graduation rate
- 45%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $6,270 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 1,321
About the Program
Orem, Utah is home to Utah Valley University, a public university of 46,807 students. During the most recent year on record it awarded 1,321 associate's degrees, a count at the 98th percentile for size. Of the students who start at Utah Valley University, 45% graduate, and that beats 77 in every 100 institutions on this measure. Tuition and fees run $6,270 a year in state against $17,830 out of state, so on price it sits at the 44th percentile. Strongest of its measures is the number of degrees it awards, which lands at the 98th percentile.
7
Utah Tech University
Utah
63.8- Public
- College graduation rate
- 38%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $6,074 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 826
About the Program
Based in Saint George, Utah, Utah Tech University is a public university with 13,167 students on its rolls. Some 826 associate's degrees were conferred in the last year on record, a bigger output than 95% of the programs ranked alongside it. Of the students who start at Utah Tech University, 38% graduate, and that beats 59 in every 100 institutions on this measure. Expect tuition and fees of $6,074 a year as a resident and $17,642 otherwise. What lifts it most is the number of degrees it awards, where it reaches the 95th percentile.
8
Salt Lake Community College
Utah
59.9- Public
- Fully Online Option
- College graduation rate
- 29%
- In-state tuition and fees
- $4,257 a year
- Degrees awarded, latest year
- 804
About the Program
Salt Lake City, Utah is home to Salt Lake Community College, a public community college of 27,437 students. The program's last federal report shows 804 associate's degrees conferred, so it is larger than 95 in every 100 programs measured here. Of the students who start at Salt Lake Community College, 29% graduate, and that beats 29 in every 100 institutions on this measure. Expect tuition and fees of $4,257 a year as a resident and $13,701 otherwise. Distance students can complete the whole degree online, so where you live matters less here. What lifts it most is the number of degrees it awards, where it reaches the 95th percentile.
How Much Does a General Studies Associate Degree Cost in Utah?
A general studies associate degree in Utah costs $6,172 a year in resident tuition and required fees at the median of the eight programs for 2023-24, with the list split into a cheap three and a clustered five. Ensign College is $3,888, Salt Lake Community College $4,257 and Snow College $4,564. Then Utah Tech is $6,074, Utah Valley $6,270, Weber State $6,391, Southern Utah $6,770 and Utah State $8,305. Residency is the biggest lever on price: nonresidents pay $13,701 at Salt Lake, $14,130 at Snow and $24,223 at Utah State.
The state grant for a student with financial need is the Utah Promise Program, which state code opens to a financially needy student unconditionally admitted to and enrolled at a Utah postsecondary institution on at least a half-time basis. It's last-dollar: the grant may not exceed the difference between the student's cost of attendance and the total value of other financial aid. Eligibility runs until the student earns a first bachelor's degree or completes 120 credit hours, so an associate doesn't use it up, and the credits you spend on the two-year degree come out of the same 120.
Will a General Studies Associate Degree Transfer in Utah?
Yes, a general studies associate degree in Utah transfers with general education complete when it's an Associate of Arts or Associate of Science from a public college, because Board Policy R471 says a student who has earned an Associate of Arts or Associate of Science or higher degree at a USHE institution will meet the gen ed requirements of all USHE institutions. Seven of the eight programs are at USHE institutions, and the degree names bear it out: Snow awards its general studies degree as an A.A. or A.S., and so do Southern Utah, Utah State and Weber State. Ensign College is private and outside USHE, so its graduates transfer on the receiving university's evaluation.
You don't have to finish the degree to carry the protection. If you complete all gen ed requirements at a USHE institution but not an associate degree, the institution issues a certificate or letter signifying that you've met the gen ed requirements at any receiving USHE institution. Board Policy R470 sets each institution's general education program at 27 to 30 semester credits, requires those programs to be fully transferable across the system, and tells colleges to mark completion with a certificate to ensure transferability of the entire program within USHE or to non-USHE institutions. Course by course, CCN designated courses transfer as equivalent credit.
What Do Jobs With a General Studies Associate Degree Pay in Utah?
Jobs open to a general studies associate degree in Utah pay the state medians below, from the May 2025 federal wage survey, with the national median beside each for comparison. Each row links to the salary guide for that job.
How to Choose a General Studies Associate Degree Program in Utah
Pick a general studies associate degree program in Utah by where you want to finish the bachelor's, because most of these programs sit inside universities that also offer four-year degrees. Southern Utah and Utah State both award a general studies bachelor's as well as the associate, so a student who starts at either can finish without changing schools, and both offer the whole route online. Utah Valley does the same on campus. Snow College and Salt Lake Community College are two-year colleges, so their graduates move on to one of the universities with general education already settled by the Board's policy.
The trade-off the data shows is cost against completion. Salt Lake Community College charges $4,257 and graduates 29%, Snow charges $4,564 and graduates 46%, and Southern Utah charges $6,770 and graduates 61%. Snow and Ensign pair a low price with a mid-range completion rate, and Ensign is private and outside the USHE guarantee. Ask Southern Utah, Weber State and Utah Valley how a cohort of 1,321 or more graduates a year is advised, and ask Snow or Salt Lake which university their general studies graduates most often transfer to.
If you plan to finish a bachelor's in the state, the general studies bachelor's degrees in Utah have their own page.