OGDENSBURG -- Ellyssa Tennant joins first Hartwick College three-year Bachelor's Degree class in May 26 graduation.

A bachelor's degree in only three years? A top-quality liberal arts education infused with experiential learning at three-quarters of the cost in three-quarters the time? It almost sounds too good to be true, but as Tennant and the rest of the first dozen students to graduate from Hartwick College's Three-Year-Bachelor's Degree Program can attest, it's very much a reality.

Hartwick began offering a three-year degree program for 25 of its majors in 2009. By the fall of 2010, 56 students were enrolled. Another 37 students joined the three-year ranks in the fall of 2011. The most popular majors in the three-year program at Hartwick are biology, psychology, and nursing. Students enrolled in the program are required to complete 120 credits hours and participate in the college's acclaimed January Term, when students often study abroad for a month.