This is a good place to start if you don’t have money for the school you really want to attend, or don’t have the grades for the school you really want to attend.  These programs will not generally prepare you very well for the real world, but they will get you started.  

Generally, they exist in schools where a BA is not offered, like a community college.  The program will be small, and offer lots of individual attention.  The quality of teaching can vary very widely in these programs, so meet with the tech teachers beforehand and make sure you will be able to learn from them. 

Community colleges tend to be much less expensive than bigger schools, and more forgiving about students who need to work full time to support school.   Getting a year or two of school out of the way at the cheaper price and then transferring to a better program for a diploma can be one way to cut costs.  Transferring can be socially more difficult, however, and there are some added costs associated with transferring.

Often, if you don't have the grades in high school to get into your school of choice, a year of really good grades at a community college will help you be accepted the following year.  Also, if you fail out of school your first year because you had too much fun, getting good grades for a year in a community college will allow you to prove you are ready to be serious, and you may get back in.  Transferring colleges a lot will cost a lot extra, so think about these paths carefully before taking them.

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