According to National Student Clearinghouse’s most recent Signature Report, completion rates declined for students who started at two-year public institutions.
“For many disadvantaged students, enrolling in a community college is the only entry point to postsecondary education,” reads the report. “In light of this finding, improving community college/four-year institution partnerships is even more important.”
The Credit When It’s Due campaign, funded by nonprofits including the Lumina Foundation and the Gates Foundation, supports partnerships among community colleges and universities to award associate degrees to students who transfer to universities before receiving their associate degree. A dozen states have participated with the purpose of improving and expanding their reverse transfer systems, and--over the course of two years--have awarded thousandands of associate degrees through reverse transfer. “[The results of Credit When It's Due] would have a strong impact on transfer policy,” said AACRAO Senior Consultant Michele Sandlin. Sandlin and Tom Green, AACRAO Associate Executive Director, Consulting and SEM, will be presenting on free community college and transfer policies at the AACRAO Annual Meeting in Baltimore, MD. “It will be interesting to see how schools have tracked and notified students of their progress toward an associate.”
To students, an associate degree will open up many career opportunities and may further encourage them to complete a bachelor’s degree. Community colleges would also receive valuable credit for awarding associate degrees through reverse transfer, increasing their graduation rates and potentially earning more state funding.
Read the Spotlight Interview with Green and Sandlin on their session, “What Would Free Community College Mean for Your Transfer Policies?”