THE COLLEGE TRANSFER STUDENT IN AMERICA: THE FORGOTTEN STUDENT Bonita C. Jacobs, Ph.D. President North Georgia College & State University September 13, 2011

DEFINING TRANSFER Traditional 2-Year to 4-Year public 2-year to 4-year private Other Patterns Transfer Swirl 2

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS All transfers go to community colleges for two years and finish the last two years at a four-year school Forget transfer orientation! They wont come 3

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS Transfer students do not want to be involved on campus Parents of transfer students are not interested in being involved with the campus 4

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS Transfer students do not live in residence halls Transfer students are inferior students 5

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS Retention strategies are not needed for transfer students Transfer students do not connect with the university Transfer students will not donate to the University following graduation 6

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS Transfer students go to a two-year school from high school only because: they are less mature they dont have the money for a four-year school they dont have the grades to get into a four-year school 7

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS Transfer students who go to a two-year school from high school do not have goals or aspirations 8

MYTHS ABOUT TRANSFER STUDENTS The majority of transfer students are non-traditional in age International students do not transfer 9

BOTTOM LINE: Transfer Students Are Diverse Within Themselves 10

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT TRANSFER Nearly 60% of all students who graduate from a four-year institution entered college at a different institution (NECS, 2007) 11

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT TRANSFER 11% were at some point co-enrolled in more than one college (NECS, 2002) 12

TRANSFER STUDENTS: ETHNICALLY DIVERSE Racial and ethnic minorities account for about 48% of the community college population (Phillippe & Patton for AACC, 1999) At the national level, community college students represent higher percentages of underrepresented, non-traditional, low-income, and lower performing students (Falconetti & Jones, 2009) 13

TRANSFER STUDENTS: ETHNICALLY DIVERSE Among all undergraduates: 57% of Native Americans are in community colleges 47% of Asian/Pacific Islanders are in community colleges 47% of Blacks are in community colleges 55% of Hispanics are in community colleges (NCES, 2007) 14

TRANSFER & GRADUATION RATE Transfers are less likely to graduate in four years 51 months - single institution average 59 months - two-institutions average 67 months - three or more institutions average But just as likely to complete a degree program 15 (NCES, 2007)

STUDENT ENGAGEMENT NSSE and other research suggest that transfer students are less involved in clubs, service, research with faculty, etc. Intrinsic to student factors, such as more need to work, older and have families, etc.? But, we must be careful to not generalize transfer students. 16

Do we exert same amount of energy on transfer success initiatives as on freshman success initiatives? 17

A DECADE PAST: The Policy Center on the First Year of College found that: Only 1/3 of institutions offer special services for transfer students … 18 (Swing, R. L. 2000)

… Those institutions that did not offer special services explained that: Their transfer population was too small Traditional programs care for transfer needs 19 (Swing, R. L. 2000)

20 … Further, Swing found that Of those who do offer special services they are usually limited to: Transcript evaluation Transfer-specific orientation Institutions assume that transfer students are experienced and do not need other services Those days are gone… Swing, R. L. (2000)

TRANSFER ISSUES: STATE PRACTICES Much variance from state to state …but all weighing in! 21

TRANSFER ISSUES: ARTICULATION AGREEMENTS Depending on the campus, can be quite diverse Institutional Departmental Those who implement the agreements should be involved in the formulation of the details Including faculty is vital Transfer vs. applicability to a particular degree plan 22

TRANSFER ISSUES: ORIENTATION Transfers are diverse! Thus, orientation must be diverse What about parents? Can they affect the NSSE data on transfer engagement? What about engagement? Involvement from the top 23

TRANSFER ISSUES: ADVISING Developmental as well as prescriptive – including clarification of goals and discussions regarding choices Knowledge of articulation agreements, common course numbering, computer transfer systems is imperative! 24

THE 3 STAGES OF TRANSFER Stage One: What They Expect Before Transfer 60% expect to feel marginalized & worry about navigating the system 92% struggle with their need for guidance 93% are concerned with fitting into the university culture I am sure Ill be lost 25 eSource, Karen Owens, February 2009

THE 3 STAGES OF TRANSFER Stage Two: Student Perception at Mid- Semester 95% express a need for more personal attention 88% seek more academic integration 51% desire more social interaction 86% of students identified poor communication in and between institutions as a significant issue 26

THE 3 STAGES OF TRANSFER Stage Three: Recommendations for Success 49% recommend transfer advisors someone to call their own 49% recommend a transfer-specific orientation 27% ask for a step-by-step transfer checklist 27

A PERFECT STORM Voluntary System of Accountability and the College Portrait Legislative Pressures (Federal and State) Statewide Agreements & Common Course Guidelines Returning Veterans 28

IPKIT EDUCATION.MISSOURI.EDU/ORGS/IPKIT/INDEX Institutional Audit of Policies, Practices, and Attitudes Affecting Transfer Students Version 1: For Community Colleges Version 2: For Baccalaureate Degree Institutions Conducting Focus Groups about Transfer Constructing Surveys about Transfer Coding Open-Ended Responses to Survey Questions Data Sources for Information about Transfer and Degree Attainment 29

FOE John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education Foundations of Excellence for Transfer 2-Year and 4-Year Versions 30

WE KNOW THAT THERE ARE: Students Who Do Not Plan for Transfer Course Applicability Limitations Reverse and Swirling Transfer Issues Financial Aid Issues 2-year and 4-year Communication Issues 31

Only 33.5% of students intending to transfer report that they received their transfer information from their college counselor or advisor 36.4% of students feel they do not have enough information to transfer successfully 32 Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education

INSTITUTIONAL RESEARCH What data do you have on transfer students? What data should you have? The amount of information available about first-time students is far more complete than information about transfer students 33

ASSESSMENT! Of articulation agreements Of success rates from Campus A to Campus B Of transfer orientation Of transfer advisement Of transfer student engagement Of transfer student expectations Of transfer student satisfaction 34

NATIONAL INSTITUTE FOR THE STUDY OF TRANSFER STUDENTS Texas Transfer Success Conference May 22, th Annual Conference January 25-27, 2012, Fort Worth, Texas 35