After several years of pandemic-related declines, college transfer rates are once again on the rise. This is welcome news. College transfer has long been viewed as a crucial pathway to economic mobility.
For millions of students who start their postsecondary journey at one of the nation’s community colleges, transferring to a four-year institution has the potential to greatly improve their long-term career prospects. Community college graduates who go on to complete a four-year degree are more likely to earn more and less likely to be unemployed.
But the community college transfer movement might be a victim of its own success. Two reports released last year revealed that fewer than half of students who transfer from a community college go on to earn a bachelor’s degree. And fewer students who intend to transfer actually do. As it turns out, transferring can add significant financial risk for students who are disproportionately from low-income, first-generation and other underrepresented backgrounds. Many institutions are ill-equipped to address the unique needs of transfer students, who tend to be older, more diverse and less well-off than those who started college at a four-year institution.
Though transfer students recognize the need to increase their return on their educational investment, they often wind up at institutions that lack the structure, resources and guidance to support them as they navigate this period of change. That leaves these students snared in a transfer trap — and forces them to fend for themselves. To make good on the promise of college transfer, university leaders have a responsibility to address the challenges faced by transfer students and take measures to improve their outcomes.
Focused on credits
Four-year institutions should streamline the transfer process by seeking ways to accept students’ credits — not reject them. On average, students who transfer lose 13 credits — roughly a semester’s worth of hard work, time and money. In addition, nearly 40% of transfer students received no credit at all for previously completed academic work.
Four-year institutions should have up-to-date articulation agreements with their most common feeder colleges to ensure that transfer students stay on track to a bachelor’s degree. For returning adult learners who might have stepped away from higher education years earlier, institutions should elevate their Credit for Prior Learning policies that translate on-the-job, military and other experiences into progress toward a degree.
U.S. Department of Education rules that took effect last year have eliminated many instances whereby institutions can withhold student transcripts for nonpayment of college bills. Institutions should take the next step and get rid of registration holds that prevent students from resuming their studies at the institution where they started.
Clear pathways
Institutions should build clear and direct academic pathways that lead to jobs and successful careers. Getting a good job after graduation remains the primary motivator for most students enrolling in college. One recent survey found that more than half of students enroll in college to increase their earning potential, while nearly 60% complete their degrees so they can earn more money.
Yet too many college degree programs award “credentials to nowhere” that don’t address skill shortages in emerging industries or lead to high-wage jobs at companies that are hiring. Institutions should show students how each degree program translates into entry into or advancement within a career field and lay out a path students should follow from the first day of class to their first day at a new job.
Ideally, this work starts long before students set foot on campus. Four-year institutions should work closely with their articulation partners to construct community college pathways that lead directly and seamlessly into bachelor’s degree programs aligned with workforce demands.
Support for success
The secret to helping transfer students succeed at a new institution is to support them at every turn. For example, students at City Colleges of Chicago receive a full suite of wraparound supports — academic, financial, professional and personal — to help them succeed in college and beyond. Research shows that this comprehensive model leads to a meaningful and statistically significant increase in enrollment, persistence and graduation. Four-year institutions should consider adopting similar research-driven approaches to provide similar support to students transferring into a new college environment.
One successful support model has emerged from a collaboration between the University of Arizona and nearby Pima Community College designed to improve the transfer and graduation rates of talented low-income and underrepresented community college students pursuing STEM degrees. This STEM bridge program provides students with scholarship dollars and faculty mentors that generate a sense of belonging and community. In the program’s first three years, 98% of participating community college students transferred to the University of Arizona, and 95% are persisting in STEM majors.
College transfer represents a life-changing opportunity for those who finish — and an expensive and time-consuming detour for those who don’t. Students who transfer to a four-year institution expect a return on investment in the form of better jobs, better outcomes and better lives. It’s up to postsecondary institutions to support students and help them turn their hopes into reality.
