What's the Situation? Post-Transfer Experiences of Transfer Students at a Four-Year Public Research University

• In Event: 44.084 - Roundtable Session 18
  In Roundtable Session: 44.084-17 - Transition and Persistence to Higher Education

Abstract

The National Student Clearinghouse Research Center found that students who started their college careers at community colleges had a bachelor’s degree completion rate of 16.2%, while students who started at 4-year public institutions had a completion rate of 62.8%. The disparity in types of degrees, based on where students initiated their postsecondary education, perpetuates the stratification of opportunities to underrepresented communities where first generation, low income and students of color are marginalized (Bensimon & Dowd, 2009b; Shapiro et al., 2013). Access to 4-year institutions is insufficient, they must complete their bachelor’s degree in order to change the stratification of opportunity (Carnevale & Rose, 2011). What is less clear in the existing discourse is the post-transfer experiences of transfer students.

Author

• Dalinda Martinez, Michigan State University