Experiences with Transferring College Credits Earned in High School

• In Event: Promise Fulfilled? The Transfer of College Credits Earned in High School

Abstract

Objective: This presentation illuminates the experiences of students who transfer college credits earned in high school and the perspectives of staff who were involved in the transfer of credits earned in high school.

Perspectives: In North Carolina, the most common ways for high school students to earn college credit are through AP exams and dual enrollment courses. A benefit of earning college credits in high school, often cited by policymakers, is that students who transfer them to college may be more likely to graduate. Researchers have identified three other potential benefits: reducing students’ time to degree (Edmunds et al., 2020; Evans, 2019), reducing students’ debt (Evans, 2019b), and enabling a richer postsecondary experience (Gurantz, 2019).

Method & Data Sources: This is a qualitative study using 1) interviews with college students who earned college credits in high school and transferred them to their college and 2) interviews with college staff who are involved with the transfer of credits earned in high school (registrars, admissions staff, advisors, and faculty). We will be conducting interviews with high school staff in the fall of 2025. Students and staff were from three North Carolina community colleges and four North Carolina public 4-year universities, including one HBCU. To date, 37 interviews have been completed, with approximately 25 more anticipated to be completed in Fall 2025, including those with high school advisors. Interviews were recorded and transcribed and coded using a mix of inductive and deductive coding.

Results: Students have primary responsibility for initiating the credit transfer process for dual enrollment and AP credits. While many students reported receiving information in high school about the transfer process, some entered college unaware of what they needed to do. Only a few students were advised to use transfer guides published by colleges to help them choose college credit classes. College advisors encouraged students to initiate credit transfer as soon as possible so that transferred credits could inform course registration choices. According to advisors and other college staff, students did not always graduate early despite transferring in credits. The main reasons they cited were students changing their major and transferred courses not satisfying major pre-requisites. In addition, some students with transferred credits were not prepared for the rigors of traditional college classes and had to retake classes. Additionally, instead of accelerating their time to degree, some students took advantage of “banked” college credits and reduced their course load for one or more semesters, which allowed them to focus on fewer classes, do an internship, or study abroad.

Significance: This investigation is part of a study that is the first to look at the transferability of college credits earned in high school. This qualitative work provides insights about the experiences of students who transfer credits, as well as college staff involved in the credit transfer process, that should help colleges revise their processes and policies so that students can more easily get the full benefits of the college credits they transfer in.

Authors

• Laura Rosof, University of North Carolina - Greensboro

• Tiffany Lee Smith Tovey, University of North Carolina - Greensboro