Texas Southmost College is offering a Weekend College Program for adults who want to attend college to earn an associate degree but cannot do so during the week.
Classes for TSC Beyond, also known as The Weekend College, began during the 2022 fall semester and classes will be held on Saturdays. The fall semester begins Aug. 22. The last day to register for classes is Aug. 19.
David R. Pearse, TSC Dean of Health Professions, explained that TSC Beyond caters to working adults who want to attend college but may not be able to attend because of their work schedules or other family responsibilities.
Pearse said The Weekend College was something he built when he was working for a college in Fort Worth. He ran the program for about eight years and had “extreme success getting working people to complete their degree resulting in advanced employment opportunities and increased salary options.”
He was hired by TSC in September 2020 as Dean of Health Professions and introduced the idea of having a Weekend College at TSC.
The program began in January and officials hope to begin the first real cohort in the fall, Pearse said.
Students enrolled in the program will need to enroll in two classes on Saturdays during the first eight weeks of the semester and another two during the last eight weeks for four courses per semester. Through hybrid teaching methods, students are eligible for full-time status, making them eligible for financial aid and other benefits, such as Veterans Affairs benefits, officials said.
Under the hybrid teaching method, students will be required to complete online assignments during the week and meet in person with their instructors from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturdays.
Pearse said students who enroll in TSC Beyond, will be able to earn and Associate of Arts degree is as little as 18 months. The Associate of Arts degree is basically a universal “general education degree” where students learn the basics in English, math, history, government, speech, plus electives. It is something that will be transferred over later for those students planning to move forward with earning a bachelor’s degree.
“An Associate’s degree is just basic general education. There is no specific career path for it, but a lot times when you are like at your job they say ‘well you know if you have an associate’s degree we will pay you more’…if you have a degree it can help you advance in your career,” Pearse said.
Pearse said there has been a lot of positive feedback and talk from potential students who would like to enroll in TSC Beyond. “We are looking forward to hopefully full classes.”
TSC Beyond is good for those individuals who work during the day because it will give them an opportunity to start to earn a degree while attending Saturday classes.
“Because the classes are held on Saturday, they get to work during the week if they have a regular job and get to spend time with their family and come to school on Saturday. It makes it really nice for them,” he said.
Pearse said the average age of the students in the class is 30 and the goal is to give them what they need.
“We will do everything we can to get you completed. We are going to give you a pathway step by step; I will tell you what classes you are taking every semester and get you in and get you out as quicky as possible without you missing a beat in your life, or your job or your family. That is what we are doing, we are moving forward, we are getting people graduated,” he said.
For more information about TSC Beyond, email or contact David Pearse at (956) 295-3753 or [email protected]
