To measure the amount of time it takes to earn an Associate of Arts degree at the San Diego Community College District, a study was undertaken of the number of years and number of semesters graduating students at three district colleges had been enrolled. A random sample of 300 students was drawn from the 1,130 students graduating in June 1992, and information was collected on student characteristics; educational objectives; the first term and the number of terms enrolled; whether students stopped-out; and the number of units attempted, earned, and transferred from another institution. Study findings included the following: (1) the 107 students who had not transferred units from other institutions took an average of 5.8 years to earn the degree, while students with transferred units took 6.6 years; (2) for all students, the mean number of terms taken to earn the degree was 11.1, with a minimum of 2 terms (n=2) and a maximum of 49 (n=1); (3) the average age of the graduating sample was 30.9, compared to 29.3 years of age for the spring 1992 student body; (4) the number of years taken to earn a degree varied by ethnicity, ranging from an average of 4.6 years for African Americans to 8.6 years for Latinos; and (5) women took an average of 6.45 years to earn their degree, versus 6.2 for men. Data tables are appended. (BCY)