A degree speedrun, or speedrun degree, is an informal term for completing a college degree much faster than the traditional timeline, often by combining transfer credits, prior learning, online courses, competency-based education, and self-paced assessments.

Recent reporting, for example, described students completing bachelor’s degrees in a few months through online, competency-based programs. The University of Maine at Presque Isle’s YourPace program uses eight-week sessions and flat-rate tuition, allowing students who can move quickly to complete more work in less time. Western Governors University also uses a competency-based model; it reports that students finish bachelor’s degrees in about 2.5 years on average, with some finishing faster.

This model is not equally possible in all fields. Programs that require clinical practice, laboratory work, supervised field placements, licensure preparation, studio critique, apprenticeships, or extensive faculty-guided formation are harder to compress. Speedrun approaches are more feasible where learning can be assessed through written work, exams, projects, transfer credit, or demonstrated competencies. They often serve specialty populations, such as military, who completed education and training sequences in other venues.

Degree speedruns can expand access for adults who already have work experience, prior credits, or strong self-directed learning skills. They can also raise concerns about quality, assessment integrity, employer interpretation, and whether the degree reflects broad educational development or mainly credential completion.

Informal language sometimes related to speedrun degrees includes degree hacking, which refers to strategies students use to reduce the time and cost of earning a degree by maximizing transfer credit, self-paced coursework, prior learning, and competency-based assessment.