Improving Community College–to–Four-Year College Transfer: A Policy Analysis and Student Perspective

• In Event: 42.048 - Not Just About the Bachelor's: Access Pathways for Community College and Graduate School

Abstract

Community colleges are the first point of access to higher education for millions of students looking for an affordable path to a bachelor’s degree. Yet, credit loss when students transfer from community college to a four-year institution is a major barrier to degree attainment. This study investigates the challenge of community college credit mobility in 10 states: California, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, and Washington. It advances a new policy framework for understanding different approaches to ensuring that students’ credits transfer and apply to their major, identifies key reasons why community college students lose credit even under the most comprehensive policies, and presents recommendations for preventing credit loss.

Authors

• Michelle Hodara, Education Northwest

• Mary Martinez-Wenzl, Education Northwest

• David Stevens, University of Chicago

• Christopher J. Mazzeo, Education Northwest