Assessing the Transition of Transfer Students from Community Colleges to a University

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine how pretransfer experiences and preparation, along with posttransfer experiences, influence the adjustment of community college transfer students (as measured by academic achievement and satisfaction with various aspects of the university experience) to life on a four-year university campus. A survey of 372 community college transfer students attending a large, public four-year university provides empirical evidence that those students who are best informed and who have most actively prepared for transfer are most likely to achieve higher grades and be more satisfied in the university environment. The findings from this study also suggested that patterns of academic and social involvement shift as students move from two-year college settings to a four-year university. The article concludes with a discussion of strategies that can be instituted at both two and four-year institutions to assist community college transfer students in making a successful transition to a four-year college or university.

Effects of Exposure to Part-time Faculty on Community College Transfer

“…Berger and Malaney (2003) note that successful transfer decisions are directly related to how well students have been prepared for the transfer process. Community college students who develop relationships with key institutional agents, such as with academic advisors and full-time faculty, may gain access to important information about the transfer process.…”

Transfer seminar : a case study of transfer students' experiences at a private, four-year college in Brooklyn, New York, using Tinto's model of persistence

“…Academically, the transition period for transfers is also characterized by a more difficult time finding faculty and obtaining academic advising at the university than they were used to from their community college experience (Berger & Malaney, 2003). The study suggests that this could be due to the fact that the four-year school has a larger student enrollment or that these processes are just new and students have to learn again how to navigate.…”

“…Many four-year colleges and universities are reacting to this phenomenon by focusing more than ever on strategies for student retention (Tinto, 2006(Tinto, -2007Swail, Redd & Perna, 2003). Retaining students who transfer to a new institution in the middle of their undergraduate experience poses unique challenges, since they have already left one institution (Berger & Malaney, 2003;Kurland & Siegel, 2013;ChinNewman & Shaw, 2013). The focus of this study is on the student experience of a semester-long Transfer Seminar as a particular intervention strategy to support transfer students' transitions and persistence at the institution.…”

“…In addition, transfer student transition to a new institution is oftentimes characterized by stress, chaos, and confusion, with academic, psychological, and environmental challenges (Chin-Newman & Shaw, 2013). While much research has been done covering transfer students in general and the issues surrounding their transitions (Berger & Malaney, 2003;Kurland & Siegel, 2013;Chin-Newman & Shaw, 2013), much less has been focused on studying the efficacy of particular intervention strategies an institution can implement to address common transfer student issues related to retention.…”

“…Academically, the transition period for transfers is also characterized by a more difficult time finding faculty and obtaining academic advising at the university than they were used to from their community college experience (Berger & Malaney, 2003). However, the faculty member of the Transfer Seminar was found to provide students with a "point of access"…”