Forecasting Curricular Information Asymmetries for Transfer Students in the Face of Large-Scale Programmatic Change

• In Event: What Matters for STEM Participation in College? A Longitudinal View of STEM Identities and STEM Pathways

Abstract

This work presents a method of forecasting the potential impact on transfer students when large-scale curricular changes are made using the case of an electrical and computer engineering department at a public four-year institution. Because information does not typically travel well from four-year institutions to community colleges, gaps in knowledge called information asymmetries emerge for transfer students. We quantitatively evaluate a component these asymmetries by leveraging the framework of curricular complexity from Heileman et al. (2017) to map transfer student pathways before and after the change. The maps provided insight into how students expecting to apply transfer credit from the old curriculum will be affected and prompted discussion on how to mitigate negative outcomes.

Authors

• David Reeping, University of Cincinnati

• Dustin Michael Grote, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University

• David Knight, Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University