New ODU, TCC partnership opens another pathway to bachelor’s degree

This fall, Old Dominion University, in partnership with Tidewater Community College, will launch weekend/evening classes aimed at providing another affordable degree completion program.

Course work for the bachelor’s degree in leadership, which is part of ODU’s Interdisciplinary Studies (IDS) program, will be hybrid in nature. In addition to online classes, the program will offer at least one course per semester that will be taught in-person on TCC’s Norfolk Campus.

The new agreement allows TCC’s General Studies and Social Sciences graduates to seamlessly complete the ODU bachelor’s degree program.

James M. Shaeffer, dean of ODU’s College of Continuing Education, said program advantages will include flexibility, quicker degree completion and greater affordability, as well as in-person access to faculty members.

“There are a lot of online programs out there,” Shaeffer said. “What differentiates this one is face-to-face access to faculty advising.”

Cost and convenience are major benefits, said Daniel DeMarte, TCC’s executive vice president for Academics and Student Affairs. “Not only do students save on their degrees by completing their first two years at TCC, but they also have the convenience of taking ODU courses right on our Norfolk Campus.”

For more information, visit Old Dominion University’s Interdisciplinary Studies website.