if i have attended college across 6 years (2019-2024), have an associates degree, but also have 102 college credits, am i eligible for the american opportunity tax credit

[aant21903]

ill add all details now. i have been in college technically since 2019 (my high school offered classes for free, up until spring 2022). i was able to get an associates degree from this. i have since decided to go back to school and pursue another degree. in 2023 (so, fall 2022; i started paying for school this time), my parents claimed me as a dependent and therefore claimed the AOTC credit for me. in 2024 (entire 2023 school year), i claimed as an independent and took the lifetime learning credit because i was under the impression i could not claim the AOTC, that is in the past now... im still not sure if i was able to but, that is why im here. anyway, looking at my transcript now, i have 102 college credits. given that ive been in school since 2019 basically, have had both the LLC and AOTC claimed in my name once, but am not technically at what is considered a bachelor degree's credits yet, does this mean i am eligible to claim the AOTC this year? i am also full time. everything else in terms of eligibility is good, im just confused here because ive been in school for the last 5 years but dont have the 4 years worth of credits that turbotax talks about when asked.

[Hal_Al]

The simple answer is: if you don't have a bachelor's degree, you haven't completed 4 years of post secondary education and are still eligible for the AOTC.

Technically, that statement may not be exactly correct. For example, if you have  completed all your courses and only needed to submit a dissertation, to get a degree, you would not be eligible for the AOTC.  In your situation, everything you described says you're still eligible for the AOTC.