The educational requirements for an associate dean typically include a Master's or Doctorate degree. According to Melissa Gregory, Dean and Professor at the University of Toledo, "Today's contemporary liberal arts degrees typically prepare you for a lifetime of career adaptation by cultivating deep infrastructure skills such as communication, analysis, creativity, quantitative abilities, and others." She further adds, "A liberal arts degree takes the long view of how a graduate might advance successfully through a lifetime of work where economic, political, and technological forces regularly close out old jobs and create new opportunities." Therefore, a flexible degree that rigorously trains one to be smart and adaptive can prepare them for entering the workforce quickly and also set them up for long-term success.
The most common degree for associate deans is bachelor's degree, with 51% of associate deans earning that degree. The second and third most common degree levels are master's degree degree at 28% and master's degree degree at 14%.