The Role of Transfer in the Attainment of Bachelor’s Degrees at Washington Public Baccalaureate Institutions, Class of 2006 Higher Education Coordinating Board October 27, 2009 University of Washington Tacoma 1

Method and Questions Used combined PCHEES & SBCTC data files Conducted by Paul Stern, Kirby Pitman, and Dave Pavelchek, SESRC – Puget Sound Division Examined academic and background characteristics of 2006 Public Baccalaureate Graduates (n=19,272), including by: campus type – (main, branch, and center) % transfer vs. direct entry type of two-year degree earned enrollment in pre-college English or math successful degree completion (by 6 broad major areas) 2

Limitations Some variables were not available in the developing database (e.g. earned credits, etc.) Some data were missing, particularly transfer credits from institutions other than Washington Community and Technical Colleges Some data were collected inconsistently by colleges (e.g. dual credit) 3

Public degree production has grown rapidly at centers, branch campuses, and other off-campus locations 4

Most graduates enrolled in courses at two or more colleges 5 Type of Student #% Direct Entry 7,918 41% CTC Transfers 7,278 38% Other Transfer 2,799 15% Unknown 1,277 6% TOTAL19, %

Direct entry students tended to be younger (under 25) than transfer students 6 Transfer Status by Age at Graduation 0 2,500 5,000 7,500 10,000 Direct Entry (9,191) CTC Transfers (7,278) Other Transfer (2,797) Under 25

The student population at branches and centers are older... 7 Campus Type by Age at Graduation 68% 79% 71% 35% 26% 18% 14% 18% 27% 24% 14% 7% 11% 38% 50% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% Total (N=19,266) Research Univ (N=9,291) Regional Comp. (N=6,721) Branch Campus (N=1,933) Center (N=1,321) Under

... and more are transfer students 8 67% 71% 34% 29% 23% 27% 14% 11% 2% 52% 59% 0%25%50%75%100% Center (N=1,321) Branch Campus (N=1,933) Regional Comp (N=6,726) Research Univ (N=9,292) Transfer Status by Campus Type CTC TransfersOther TransferDirect Entry

The majority of CTC transfer students successfully completed remedial coursework and went on to complete a Bachelor’s degree 9

More than 4,500 students successfully completed remedial coursework at a CTC in English or Math and progressed to a bachelor’s degree 35% of STEM graduates (n=232) and 50% of business graduates (n=505) took pre-college math 10

Mission Matters: Different types of institutions tend to specialize in particular majors Distribution of Majors by Campus Type 11 17% 16% 13% 23% 31% 17% 24% 13% 9% 1% 5% 2% 9% 4% 15% 4% 3% 2% 16% 5% 20% 25% 17% 11% 14% 27% 24% 33% 31% 12% 9% 6% 12% 7% 22% 0% 25% 50% 75% 100% OverallResearch UnivRegional CompBranch CampusCenter Majors by Campus Type OtherArts and LettersSoc Sci & PsychHealthEducationSTEMBusiness

Transfer Pathways seem to be effective 48 out of 53 students completing the Business DTA/MRP earned a bachelor’s degree in business 12 Median Credits Attempted/Earned Toward Business Degree credits Total (N=1,211) Business DTA (N=44) DTA (N=923) No AA Earned (N=175) Technical and Other Degree (N=69)

Transfer Pathways seem to be effective  145 out of 152 students completing an A. S. Track 2 (engineering/physics) completed a bachelor’s degree in a STEM-related major  68 out of 83 students earning an A. S. Track 1 (biology/chemistry) majored in either STEM or health 13

Next Steps Continue working with Education Research and Data Center (ERDC) to improve PCHEES data set. – Capture earned as well as attempted credits Identify core questions for longitudinal studies about transfer, as well as any additional questions more suitable for periodic studies. Consider the pro’s and con’s in integrating the two transfer studies we currently conduct into one report. 14