VERMONT’S
FreeDegree Promise
offers a debt-free associate degree through the state’s Early College program at the Community College of Vermont (CCV).
Vermont has the lowest high school graduation and college continuation rates in New England. A free, fast-tracked associate degree is a game changer.
Since the Free Degree Promise was announced: • Triple the number of low-
income students are accessing Early College at CCV
• Triple the number of Early College completers are persisting toward a CCV degree
In 2025, CCV graduated its largest-ever cohort of teenagers, half of whom were first-generation college-going.
Free Degree Promise students are graduating at twice the rate and in half the time as community college students nationally. JUNE 2025 GRADUATES:
25% Health Care &
Behavioral Science
14% Business 17% STEM, Environmental Science, and IT
11% Design & Media Studies 7% Early Childhood Education
“With an associate degree, I could get a great accounting job at the age of 19. That feels like a really big win for me.” —Donovan; career goal: Personal financial planner
Why CCV:
Community colleges are engines of economic mobility. CCV serves the greatest number of Vermonters of any college in the state.