A new partnership between Gwinnett Technical College and Southern Polytechnic State University is expected to allow students to earn an associate's degree and easily transition to university-level studies.

Gwinnett Tech officials Friday announced that students in the bioscience program will be allowed to transfer all of their coursework to Southern Polytechnic State University and earn a bachelor of applied science in biotechnology in two years.

Gwinnett Technical College spokeswoman Dana Urrutia says bioscience and life sciences are among Georgia's fastest growing industries. Urrutia says the state is home to more than 360 life sciences companies and most of them focus on health care applications.

Tags: Southern Polytechnic State University, bioscience, Gwinnett Techincal College