A family decision · August 2026
An accredited Associate of Science in Computer Science. Which campus, and how fast — settled together before classes start Monday, August 17.
01 · What tonight is for
The pivot to tech is decided — freight is behind us, two self-built systems are live, and the skills are already moving. What's left is execution, and execution needs specifics, not encouragement.
FRCC, CCD, RRCC, or Arapahoe. The degree itself is identical at all four — a statewide 60-credit curriculum — so this is purely a fit question. The scorecard scores it; the recommendation answers it.
Not a judgment call — a rule. The placement test sets the starting rung, and the starting rung sets the fall load. The rule itself is in the last section.
02 · Why a degree at all
The four requirements
| The shortcut | Why it's out |
|---|---|
| Self-study + certificates | No accredited credential; the math never gets rebuilt |
| Bootcamp (Turing et al.) | Not accredited, no degree — a certificate isn't the goal |
| WGU / SNHU-style online | Competency-based, no campus, no local network |
| Emily Griffith (certificates) | Not a degree school — certificates, daytime, in-person |
| AS in Computer Science | Meets R1–R4. That's the whole argument. |
Nothing faster is accredited. Nothing cheaper rebuilds the math. Both matter.
03 · Why math is the spine
The ladder up — statewide course numbers
Two rules from the catalog: 280+ on the Accuplacer AAF skips the first rung; math runs in consecutive semesters — no gaps, because retention drops when the ladder pauses.
Running alongside — the CS core
One math course and one CS course most semesters — the weekly load stays flat even when the math gets hard.
04 · The degree itself
Statewide "Degree with Designation." Same 60 credits, same course numbers at every Colorado community college — signed agreement, August 2020.
Online sections are pooled. The CO Online consortium means a student at any of the four can take online sections taught at the others.
Regionally accredited, all four. Public colleges, HLC-accredited. Nothing for-profit, nothing competency-based.
05 · The scorecard
| Campus | The case | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| FRCC | Three campuses plus online; the only published 8-semester part-time map — the pacing proof this plan is built on | No specialty designation |
| CCD | Deepest online/hybrid catalog — 24–73% of the program available online; Auraria campus downtown | The commute is downtown |
| RRCC | The networking lane — Linux, cloud, and Network+ run alongside the degree | Lakewood |
| ACC | NSA-designated cyber program; a Lockheed Martin pipeline that hires ACC two-year grads | Littleton; placement test carries a fee and a 24-hour retake wait |
Remember section 04: online sections are pooled systemwide, so no campus choice locks us out of online courses. This table is about lanes and logistics — nothing else distinguishes them.
06 · The recommendation
The default
FRCC
Why: the only school with a published 8-semester part-time map for this exact degree — the pacing in this packet isn't our guess, it's theirs. Three campuses means the commute survives any move. Strong math tutoring for the ladder.
The switch rules
If cyber security becomes the point — pick ACC: the federal NSA designation and the Lockheed pipeline are real credentials, not marketing.
If networking becomes the point — pick RRCC: Linux, cloud, and Network+ electives alongside the same degree.
If online depth becomes the point — pick CCD: the system's deepest online/hybrid catalog, downtown.
And because enrollment follows the student, not the campus — a switch later costs paperwork, not credits.
The rest of the list, checked: Colorado Mountain College — mountain campuses, thin program detail. · CMU Tech — a genuinely good Cisco program in Grand Junction; the geography fails the newborn test. · Emily Griffith — certificates, not a degree.
07 · The weekly reality
The weekly budget — two courses
The schedule: online sections, evenings after bedtime, weekend mornings — interruptible work, five steps from the crib. A campus section only when coverage exists.
The coverage: nobody is alone with the baby because of a class. Sections get chosen around the family calendar, not the other way around.
The cap: 24 hours, logged honestly. A brutal baby week doesn't break anything — next semester simply runs one course instead of two, and the finish line moves with it, out loud.
08 · The timeline
Applied at FRCC + RRCC (Aug 13). The S#, then the Accuplacer, then register by Aug 18.
Day one — College Algebra + Computer Science I
First grades post. Keep two courses or drop to one — and say the finish date out loud
Trig, then Calculus I and II, back to back. No gaps.
Halfway — 30 of 60 credits done
Degree in hand — sooner with summers and the placement skip
Eight semesters isn't our optimism — it's the college's own part-time map.
One summer course a year and a placement score that skips College Algebra pull the finish toward 2029.
09 · The honest part
The placement test starts me lower than hoped.
Fall runs one course, and the timeline is rebuilt with the advisor before we enroll. The test sets the starting rung — it isn't a verdict.
A newborn month breaks the rhythm.
That semester runs one course instead of two. The finish moves, visibly, and we reset it together when December grades post. The plan resizes; it doesn't break.
It takes longer than "two years."
Eight semesters is the honest name at this pace — summers and the placement skip pull it toward 2029. Either way, a finished credential every 16 weeks.
10 · Where it stands — Thursday, Aug 13
Question 01 — the campus
Nearly self-answered. Applied at FRCC and RRCC today. Default stays FRCC — but if RRCC's ID lands first, that's a fine answer too; the degree is identical. CCD says fall likely slides to spring.
Question 02 — the fall load
The test answers this one. 280+ on the AAF means two courses, College Algebra skipped. Below that: one course, timeline rebuilt before we enroll.
The chain, in order
Wait for the S# — 3–5 business days from today. If Monday passes quietly, Wolf Central 303-404-5000 nudges it.
Book the Accuplacer the day the ID lands — the test needs the student number first. FRCC 303-404-5301 · RRCC 303-914-6727.
Register by Tuesday, Aug 18 — last day to add a 15-week course (Colorado Online: Aug 19).
11 · The next step is a phone call
| Campus | Admissions line | Why you'd call |
|---|---|---|
| FRCC — Westminster | 303-404-5000 · Wolf Central | Applied Aug 13 — call to nudge the S# along; same line books advising |
| FRCC — Boulder County | 303-678-3722 | Longmont campus admissions |
| FRCC — Larimer | 970-226-2500 | Fort Collins campus admissions |
| CCD | 303-556-2600 · call or text | Says fall likely slides to spring — the online-depth option for later |
| RRCC | 303-914-6600 | Applied Aug 13 — just as real an answer if its ID lands first |
| ACC | 303-797-4222 | Not yet applied — the fourth card if both IDs stall |
Every number verified on the colleges' own admissions pages, August 13, 2026.
12 · The fallback — decided in advance
01 · Start late — still this fall. FRCC runs second sessions all semester: Sep 8, Sep 22, Oct 12 (add by the following day). One compressed course — CSC 1060 or College Algebra — keeps 2026 earning credits and keeps the ladder warm.
02 · Play the fourth card. ACC is the one application not yet filed — fifteen minutes, and its cyber lane is a real pick anyway. Whichever campus issues an ID first wins the fall; the degree is identical at all four.
03 · Spring, done right. Worst case is January 19 — not never. Registration opens Nov 2, and a fall spent prepping the AAF starts spring a rung higher on the ladder. The finish moves one semester, said out loud — the same rule as every resize.
Ask the hard questions — every number in this packet links back
to the colleges' own pages, verified August 12–13, 2026.
The Two-Year Degree · August 2026