Understanding the Barriers East Texas Community College Students Experience in Transferring to a Regional University

Understanding the Barriers East Texas Community College Students Experience in Transferring to a Regional University PDF Author: Kelly Leigh Coke
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Community college students
Languages : en
Pages : 134

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Book Description
There is a plethora of research available on students and the barriers they face in transferring to a university, such as transfer processes, articulations, pathways, 2+2 plans, institutional agents, and financial issues. However, in rural areas of Texas, little research is available on the barriers students endure in transferring from community colleges to four-year universities. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to determine the transfer barriers faced by a community college student population and the support services needed for their successful transfers to four-year universities. The framework that guided this study was transfer student capital and transfer shock. Transfer shock is when a student transfers from community college to university and experiences culture shock in the university culture. Transfer student capital is the support needed for transfer students. The researcher gathered the data through one-on-one interviews with 15 community college students who transferred to a four-year university. Prior to the interviews, each participant completed a presurvey consisting of questions about their community college experiences, including support received on transferring and how it impacted their decisions to transfer to a university. Participants shared in interviews that their major barriers for transferring from the community college to a university were academic advising, personal issues, and inadequate collegiate services for transfer students, such as enrollment services, financial services, and university support programs.

Understanding the Barriers East Texas Community College Students Experience in Transferring to a Regional University

Understanding the Barriers East Texas Community College Students Experience in Transferring to a Regional University PDF Author: Kelly Leigh Coke
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Community college students
Languages : en
Pages : 134

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Book Description
There is a plethora of research available on students and the barriers they face in transferring to a university, such as transfer processes, articulations, pathways, 2+2 plans, institutional agents, and financial issues. However, in rural areas of Texas, little research is available on the barriers students endure in transferring from community colleges to four-year universities. The purpose of this qualitative, phenomenological study was to determine the transfer barriers faced by a community college student population and the support services needed for their successful transfers to four-year universities. The framework that guided this study was transfer student capital and transfer shock. Transfer shock is when a student transfers from community college to university and experiences culture shock in the university culture. Transfer student capital is the support needed for transfer students. The researcher gathered the data through one-on-one interviews with 15 community college students who transferred to a four-year university. Prior to the interviews, each participant completed a presurvey consisting of questions about their community college experiences, including support received on transferring and how it impacted their decisions to transfer to a university. Participants shared in interviews that their major barriers for transferring from the community college to a university were academic advising, personal issues, and inadequate collegiate services for transfer students, such as enrollment services, financial services, and university support programs.

Understanding the Community College Transfer Student Experience from the Student Voice

Understanding the Community College Transfer Student Experience from the Student Voice PDF Author: Meg Nowak
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Community college students
Languages : en
Pages : 218

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Book Description
The meaning that each transfer student derives from a particular learning experience is unique and each individual's experience is filtered through their personal understandings, beliefs, and values. This purpose of this study is to gain an understanding of how transfer students interpret and talk about their transfer experience. The life of transfer students is generally not accessible through objective instruments and quantitative approaches. Through the use of qualitative methods this research study will assist the profession in gaining an understanding of the transfer student voice and expand the breadth and depth of knowledge about the transfer students' experience in higher education. Twenty-three transfer students at a four-year institution and eight faculty or administrators that work directly with those transfer students were interviewed. A common factor that all students in the study experienced was attendance at a community college before transferring to the university. The themes that developed as students made meaning of their transfer experience are: (1) how their community college experience frames their interpretation of their university experience; (2) individuality and transition within the context of university culture; (3) navigation and negotiation of the university environment. The discussion includes recommendations to future transfer students from the transfer student voice and a description of institutional conditions that help the community college transfer student's chances of succeeding at the four-year institution. This research adds to the limited qualitative research on students' perceptions of their transfer experience, suggesting that the transfer experience is the result of a combination of efforts made by the student, community college, and the university. Transfer students will take responsibility for their education but they are looking for a foundation for their experience through understanding the university culture. Understanding how transfer students make meaning of the transfer experience at the four-year institutions helps to improve our conversations with transfer students and direct efforts to enhance academic integration, validation, and student success.

Indiana Regional Transfer Study

Indiana Regional Transfer Study PDF Author: Alison Kadlec
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 34

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Book Description
This report details findings from focus groups with college students across Indiana. All of these students were planning to transfer or had transferred from the state community college system, Ivy Tech, to a school in the Indiana University system. We wanted to find out what these students had to say about their experiences preparing for and navigating the transfer from Ivy Tech to Indiana University. These insights can help policymakers and education leaders understand the barriers and opportunities transfer students face so they may adjust policies and practices accordingly. For students seeking a bachelor's degree, the idea of starting at a community college is a sensible one. Students could save money and get a strong foundation for success. Unfortunately, this rationale is belied by the reality that many students experience college as a maze and not a straight path forward. Most students we spoke to shared stories about false starts, costly wandering, poor advisement, time wasted and money lost. Understanding these stories is essential. The roadblocks these and other transfer students experience can have serious impacts on persistence and completion. The problem is especially acute as a significant majority of students served by these institutions arrive at college as unconfident or underprepared learners. This research was funded by Lumina Foundation and included roughly fifty focus groups with 333 transfer students in Indiana from eight Indiana University campuses and eight Ivy Tech Community College campuses. This work was planned and executed in close partnership with Indiana University and Ivy Tech [Community College]. While qualitative research is a powerful vehicle for generating a deeper understanding of a problem, the conclusions drawn from research of this kind should be viewed as suggestive rather than definitive. The following are appended: (1) Quotes by Theme; and (2) Research Design and Methodology.

The Experience of Community College Transfer Students in the Process of Attaining a Bachelor's Degree at a Regional Public University

The Experience of Community College Transfer Students in the Process of Attaining a Bachelor's Degree at a Regional Public University PDF Author: Michael Lance Gilliland
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Electronic dissertations
Languages : en
Pages : 147

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Book Description
Students who transfer from a community college to a four-year university have a singular path to travel. Researchers have studied this population for several decades. This research dissertation has built on the findings of these pioneers in the field of transfer student persistence. As a result of this study, two additional pieces of the transfer process have fallen into place. Transfer students are motivated by negative experiences as well as positive experiences. Transfer students who persist to graduation possess the capacity to make crucial adjustments which enable them to overcome numerous obstacles which stand in their way.

Understanding the Transition Experience of Community College Transfer Students to a 4-year University

Understanding the Transition Experience of Community College Transfer Students to a 4-year University PDF Author: Tony Alan Lazarowicz
Publisher:
ISBN: 9781321671452
Category : Community college education
Languages : en
Pages : 226

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Book Description
With over 60% of college graduates attending multiple institutions (United States Department of Education, 2006), many starting at community colleges, the importance of understanding community college transfer students' stories is critical to retention and graduation agendas at colleges and universities nationwide. Schlossberg's Transition Theory has recently been introduced into higher education literature as a conceptual framework for working with various student populations such as student veterans (Wheeler, 2012; Rumann, 2010); student athletes (Henderson, 2013); and students on academic probation (Tovar & Simon, 2006) among others. Minimal work has incorporated Schlossberg's Transition Theory into studies of community college transfer students; thus this study was developed to help fill that gap of understanding their transition through that lens. The central question to the study was "how do community college transfer students perceive their transition into a large research, land-grant institution." This phenomenological qualitative study incorporated journaling and interviews with 12 full-time community college transfer students (21-41 years old) at three points during their first semester (fall 2014) at a large Midwestern research institution. Using open, axial, and selective coding, the following five themes emerged: funding the college experience; transition takes time; support is critical; maturity; and personal responsibility. These participants transition experience, as indicated by the emergent themes, fit well within the context of Schlossberg's Transition Theory. Overall, these participants' transition meant an opportunity to move forward, start a new chapter, and expand one's opportunities. Consistent with other studies that have used Schlossberg's Transition Theory, there is value in considering this theoretical framework when working with community college transfer students. When universities create policies and procedures that are geared toward increasing student's assets in Schlossberg's 4-S coping resources and are mindful of the full transition (moving in, moving through, and moving out), administrators, staff, and policy makers can assist in the transition for community college transfer students and provide support to a growing portion of the student population in higher education.

Evaluating the Transfer Culture at a Texas Public University Through the Experiences of Community College Transfer Student's

Evaluating the Transfer Culture at a Texas Public University Through the Experiences of Community College Transfer Student's PDF Author: José Reyes Del Real Viramontes
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 214

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Book Description
In Texas, the majority of first time college students use the community college as an entry point into higher education. However the number of students who eventually transfer to a four-year university and in particular to the state's flagship institution, is not comparable to the amount of students who enter the system of higher education through the community college. Using the Transfer Receptive Culture framework (Jain, Herrera, Bernal, & Solorzano, 2011) and through the experiences of seven community college transfer students, this study examines the transfer culture at a Texas public university. This study aims to contribute to the literature by examining the first study that looks into the institutional culture necessary to transfer to an elite university such as Transfer Student University. Findings suggest that the university should improve the outreach, orientation /transition programs, academic/social support services, as well as support the creation of a transfer student community on campus.

Student Perspectives on Transition from Community College A.A.S. Programs to University

Student Perspectives on Transition from Community College A.A.S. Programs to University PDF Author: Jerry Alan Pyka
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Technology
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
The global employment market demands an increasingly well prepared work force. Consequently, this trend is echoed in community college graduates transferring to four- year institutes. From 2009 to 2011, over 28,000 students who graduated with an associate’s degree from a community college in the State of Texas transferred to a four-year university also in the State of Texas (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2013). Among those transferring students, very few community college graduates with an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree transferred to four-year institutions. A report by the Transfer Issues Advisory Committee (Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, 2001) identified issues that prevent or create obstacles for those A.A.S. students attempting to transfer from a community college to a four- year university: this includes, for example, policy issues, procedures and advisory support. Literature indicates that the issues and challenges confronting A.A.S. transfer students included complicated class transcripts, lack of knowledge pertaining to the process and admissions requirements (Ellison, 2004; Phillips, 2011; Sausner, 2004 Townsend & Wilson, 2006a). Along with these potential difficulties, A.A.S. transferring students must determine if the new receiving university will accept their earned credits, and if those accepted fit into a four-year degree plan (Boswell, 2000; Cejda & Rhodes, 2004). A perceived problem by transfer students is that both institutions need to improve the transfer process (Townsend & Wilson, 2006b). The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of A.A.S. degree students’ challenges and experiences of the transfer period from community college to a four-year research-intensive university. The study participants were 18 transfer students from a large community college in Texas. Participants varied in age, ethnicity, and gender. To understand the challenges of A.A.S. transfer students, a qualitative approach was selected because it allows important insights to emerge from the student perspective. Symbolic interaction was chosen as the framework as it is based on how we interpret our world (Willis, 2007), and it provides for “local understanding” through in-depth interviews to elicit a rich and thick description of the experiences of the participants and how they construct meaning from social interactions. The primary means to obtain data for my research was through the use of surveys and interviews with participants to gain a perspective of their experiences as they transitioned from a two-year college to a four-year university. The primary research question for this study was What are the experiences and perceptions of A.A.S. degreed community college students transferring to an articulated baccalaureate program at a four-year research-intensive institution? The interviews were taped (with the permission of the participant) and an analysis of the qualitative data were completed through the use of coding, reflexive journal and member checking. Transcribed data were coded into themes, organized and categorized. While the experiences of students transferring from one institution of higher education to another have been researched and discussed in previous literature, there has not been any research into the experiences of students with an Associate of Applied Science. The significance of this study is the examination of those experiences through the lens of the student and the presentation of those findings that community college and university administrators may use to refine transfer processes and procedures at their respective institution to make the transfer more seamless.

Exploring How Community College Transfer Students Experience Connection in a Commuter University

Exploring How Community College Transfer Students Experience Connection in a Commuter University PDF Author:
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Commuting college students
Languages : en
Pages : 178

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Book Description
Over the last 40 years, the expansion of the U.S. community college system resulted in a growing number of students choosing to begin their undergraduate education at a two-year institution and then transfer to a four-year institution. However, many students struggle to establish connection after transferring, especially if they transfer into a commuter university. For many college students, feelings of engagement and connection influence their persistence decisions. Using Tinto's and Astin's theories of student persistence as a framework, the purpose of this in-depth interview study is to explore how commuter community college students who transfer to Portland State University in Portland, Oregon experience connection to the university. This study also aims to identify how commuter community college transfer students become connected to PSU and how the connection experiences for these students change over time. This in-depth interview study explores the connection experiences of 14 commuter community college transfer students who transferred as college juniors. Students were at different points after transferring at the time of their interviews. This study suggests that commuter community college transfer students enroll at four-year universities with no intention of connecting to the institution. Instead, students initially focus on their academic progress. Students then establish instrumental relationships with faculty and classmates as needed in order to progress in their academics. Only once students establish strong connections with faculty and classmates do they begin to establish social relationships that provide additional forms of social support outside of the support they receive from their home social systems.

Understanding the Impact of Reverse Transfer Students on Community Colleges

Understanding the Impact of Reverse Transfer Students on Community Colleges PDF Author: Barbara K. Townsend
Publisher: Jossey-Bass
ISBN:
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 116

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Book Description
Traditional enrollment and recruitment models do not address an important pattern in the two-year college: the increasing presence of reverse transfers, students who transfer from a four-year to a two-year college. In an effort to fill this gap in the current models, this volume of New Directions for Community Colleges presents vivid profiles of the different types of reverse transfer students-- exploring their reasons for attAnding, their enrollment patterns, and their educational needs. The authors share their institutions' strategies for recruiting, retaining, and serving reverse transfer students, and reveal how the presence of reverse transfer students affects policy-making, at both the institutional and external levels.

Building Transfer Student Pathways for College and Career Success

Building Transfer Student Pathways for College and Career Success PDF Author: Sonya Joseph
Publisher: The National Resource Center for The First-Year Experience
ISBN: 1942072260
Category : Education
Languages : en
Pages : 190

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Book Description
Published in partnership with the National Institute for the Study of Transfer Students. Analysis of bachelor’s degree completion suggests that only about a third of college graduates attend a single institution from start to finish. More than one quarter earn college credits from three or more schools before completing a degree. For most, these student-defined pathways lead to increased time-to-degree and higher costs. Many will simply drop out long before crossing the finish line. Ensuring college completion and success requires an understanding of the evolving nature of transfer transitions and a system-wide approach that reaches beyond two-year and four-year institutions to include high schools participating in dual enrollment programs and military college initiatives. A new edited collection offers insight into institutional and statewide partnerships that create clearly defined pathways to college graduation and career success for all students.