1. SACRAO 2018 71st Annual Meeting February 11-14, 2018

2. Mary Beth Burlison, Assistant Registrar
** Holistic Recruiting: A Multi-Departmental Approach to Transfer Recruitment
Presenters: Larry Long, Assistant Director
Mary Beth Burlison, Assistant Registrar

3. Session Description
Transfer students are a diverse population that have a wide range of needs and questions at various points in the transfer process. Without a transfer office, many schools struggle to address the needs of these students. This presentation will discuss how the University of Tennessee uses a multi-office approach that is coordinated through a campus wide transfer taskforce, to make sure that the campus community is constantly collaborating to address the needs of this student population.

4. UTK Transfer Student Population Overview
Average Class Size
Fall and Summer:
Spring:
Average Transfer GPA
3.07
Average Number of Hours Transferred
49.3 transferable hours
Larry

5. Transfer Population- Overview
Larry
Fall 2016 Transfer Survey

6. Transfer Population- Overview
Larry
Fall 2016 Transfer Survey

7. Transfer Population- Overview
Larry
Fall 2016 Transfer Survey

8. Transfer Population- Overview
Larry
Fall 2016 Transfer Survey

9. Background Transfer Retreat
Thematic “pain points” from the student perspective:
Transfer Orientation
Advising Model
Transfer Evaluation/Petitioning
Communication
Technology MB
Transfer Action Plan 2015

10. Guiding Principles – From Transfer Retreat
The Taskforce identified guiding principles to support improvement efforts:
Positive student experience, targeted for student level and segment
Efficient and simple processes
Clear and concrete communication
Enables students to plan
Fair to the student MB
Transfer Action Plan 2015

11. Guiding Principles cont.…
Emphasize the importance of relationships (advising, student support, recruitment)
Maintain UT standards and academic integrity
Scalable to support growth
Similar UT experience for transfers as other undergraduate students MB
Transfer Action Plan 2015

12. Action Plan
The Taskforce identified nine areas for focus to support the transformation:
Admission / Pre-Enrollment Communication
Orientation
Advising, Retention, and Success
Equivalency
Petitioning
Faculty Engagement
Technology
Data and Assessment
Financial Aid MB
Transfer Action Plan 2015

13. Where are we today… Area for Improvement Accomplishments and
Actions in Progress
1. Admission/
Pre-Enrollment
New transfer website launched (
MyUTK improvements including a direct link to the transfer credit evaluation and transfer student checklist
Requested a full-time counselor for Pellissippi campus
2. Orientation
Advising and orientation teams meeting to determine options for improvement
Reviewing possibility of holding seats for transfer students in high-demand courses
3. Advising, Retention, and Student Success
Advising team requiring individual student appointments vs. group advising during orientation sessions
Pre-Orientation/Advising “homework” and websites complete.
Logging programs currently available for transfer students; conversation this spring will focus on transfer student success programming
Evaluating living learning programs for transfer students; strategies for recruiting transfers for student housing are also being discussed
4. Equivalency
Automated equivalency tables from Banner completed
Working on a program to update Banner equivalency tables when courses change; should greatly improve efficiency
5. Petitioning
Faculty approved some automatic petitions
General education petitioning process improvement in progress; Registrar staff coding faculty approved petitions beginning this semester MB
Transfer Summit Handout 2017

14. Where are we today… Area for Improvement Accomplishments and
Actions in Progress
6. Faculty Engagement
Faculty engaged in improving petitioning process
Collecting data on transfer student course success and availability of key courses transfer students need
Conducted a Transfer Symposium for faculty and staff during fall semester 2016 to learn about our transfer student population
7. Technology
Timeline and costs for technology plan approved and completed
8. Data and Assessment
Completed three focus groups with transfer students to better understand issues related to orientation, advising, student life, residence halls, and veterans
Conducted productive campus visit to Appalachian State to evaluate practices
Surveyed fall 2016 transfer students about their transfer student experience
9. Financial Aid
Discussing the financial aid process for transfer students and exploring scholarship possibilities
Implemented a new transfer scholarship for incoming eligible students beginning fall 2017 and any entry term after that MB
Transfer Summit Handout 2017

15. Future Improvements Possible Transfer Office
Combining essential staff from existing offices to improve how we serve transfer students
Leadership positions aimed at continuing the transfer conversation on our campus
Positions aimed at having more of a presence on the campuses of our largest feeder community colleges.
Looking at ways to continually improve onboarding and 1st semester retention
Getting students involved on campus
Make sure we identify at risk students earlier
Larry

16. Questions? Contact Information
Larry Long Mary Beth Burlison
(865) (865)