Helping Community College Students
Climb the
Transfer
Ladder
1
Contents
When Aspirations Don’t Match Actions 2
Why Aren’t More Students Transferring? 3
Early Advising Is Key 4
Who Plans to Transfer 5
What Students Say About Their Plans Around Transfer 6
What Helps Students Know More About Transfer Plans 8
Having a Program, Major, or Pathway of Study 8
Finding Useful Information on the College Website 9
Talking With Someone About Transfer Plans 10
Why More Guidance Is Needed About Transfer 11
Questions for Consideration 13
2
This is how a CCCSE focus group participant responded
to a question about why he decided to come back to
community college after some time away. Community
colleges offer students points of entry to a better way of
life, and one of the most signicant ways they do so is
through low-cost accrual of college credit that can be
applied to a bachelor’s degree upon transfer to a four-year
college or university.
Obtaining an associate degree will no doubt provide most
students with an economic boost—but completing a
bachelor’s degree can be life changing. While an associate
degree offers students median annual earnings that
are 13% higher than those of a high school graduate, a
bachelor’s degree affords students earnings that are 37%
higher than those of students who end their academic
journeys with an associate degree.
1
Most students who attend community college intend to transfer; in fact, in a 2022 data collection through
the Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE ), 83% of respondents reported that they had
plans to transfer to a four-year college or university (N = 7,572). But according to the National Student
Clearinghouse Research Center, only 32% of community college students transfer—and of those who do,
only about half earn a bachelor’s degree within six years.
2
In the SENSE data collection, Pell recipients reported intending to transfer at the same rates as non-Pell
recipients, but a closer look into the Clearinghouse data reveals that lower-income students are much
less likely to actually transfer than their higher-income peers—25% vs. 41%.
2
erefore, the students who
stand to gain the most from transferring and completing a bachelor’s degree are the least likely to do so.
When Aspirations Don’t Match Actions
“The reason
why I’m
coming back
to school
is because
I’m tired of
being poor.”
3
Why Aren’t More Students Transferring?
Almost half (47%) of SENSE 2022 Cohort respondents said they did not know about transfer credit
assistance at their college (N = 31,149). Further, among students who reported knowing about transfer
credit assistance services (N = 15,983), only 24% reported having used the service.
3
Even when looking
at data from the Community College Survey of Student Engagement (CCSSE ), which is administered
mostly to returning students, we nd that 64% of respondents reported never using transfer planning
ser vices (N = 197,931).
4
Many community colleges have worked
diligently to incorporate and increase
transfer advising services and to form
transfer partnerships with four-year
colleges and universities. Yet the
process can still be a challenging one
to navigate alone—and the SENSE
and CCSSE data illustrate that most
students are not seeking help from
those who would be best able to assist
them. As such, they are oen met
with complex articulation agreements
and confusing website information
to make sense of without guidance.
5
For example, students might lack
information about transfer prerequisites—which can dier institution to institution—such as GPA and
course requirements. As a result, students oen nd that many of the credits they have accrued at the
community college won’t transfer or don’t apply to the major they have selected.
5, 6
Additionally, many community college
students are not transferring into a
four-year college or university with a
clear vision of what they want to study.
e Clearinghouse found that over
half of transfer students change their
major when transitioning to a new
institution.
7
What this all leads to for students is
a loss of time and money, two things
most cannot aord to waste.
“My advisor has told me that specific colleges
around this area accept a lot of the credits here.
I also used a website called Transferology to look
and see if my credits will transfer. There is one
college about an hour away from here that’s a
99 percent match. That’s one of the colleges that
my advisor has given me an e-mail to someone
that I can talk to about transferring. It is a very
comforting feeling that my classes will transfer.
That way, I know I’m not wasting any time, I’m not
wasting money, and I know that, once I transfer, I
won’t have to retake classes.”
–Student
“I told my navigator what I want to study, and I
told her what school I wanted to transfer to, and
I asked her what classes I should take at this
college to transfer into the program I want to study
at the college I’m transferring to. We sat there
and signed up for the classes together. Then, a
week later, I went to the actual college I’m going
to transfer to, and I showed the navigator there
the list. They told me that the list was not accurate,
and so I had to change my classes.”
–Student
4
Some may question the value of students discussing their transfer goals with an advisor or college
sta member during the rst few weeks of their community college journeys. But if students intend to
transfer—and the vast majority assert that they do—early conversations about their aspirations, as well
as what it will take for them to attain those aspirations, will help them develop concrete academic plans
related to their future goals.
In a recent Chronicle of Higher Education virtual panel exploring transfer policies, several speakers
asserted that advising is key to successful transfer, but not enough students access it early enough or take
advantage of it at all. One of the panelists—John Fink, a senior research associate at the Community
College Research Center—said, “It’s too little, it’s too late, on the way out of community college instead of
on the way in.”
8
Early Advising Is Key
RESPONDENTS:
This report contains data from 8,836 entering students across 40 community colleges who responded
to the Survey of Entering Student Engagement (SENSE ) in fall 2022. SENSE is administered in the fourth
and fth weeks of the fall academic term and asks students to reect on their experiences from the time
they decide to enroll in the college through the end of the third week.
“So if a student does have a major in mind, what we will do
then is refer them after they’ve completed the initial
enrollment steps to academic advising and then
they meet with an advisor who is assigned
based on program of study. If a student truly
is undecided beyond that point, they
don’t have to initially declare a
major and what that does is
it triggers our Career and
Transfer Services Oce.”
–Advisor
5
Although SENSE data show that most community college students across all races, ages, and enrollment
statuses intend to transfer (as shown below), national data suggest that students, regardless of these
characteristics, are transferring at much lower rates than which they aspire to do so.
7, 9
For instance, only
23% of Native American students, 20% of Black students, 29% of White students, and 20% of Latinx
students transfer within six years.
7
AGE
0
20
40
60
80
100
85%
Traditional Age
(18–24)
Non-traditional Age
(25 and older)
66%
N = 6,822
N = 735
ENROLLMENT STATUS
0
20
40
60
80
100
Full-time Part-time
86%
79%
N = 5,654
N = 2,017
RACE/ETHNICITY
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100
74%
90%
82%
89%
79%
85%
N = 168
N = 501
N = 824
N = 2,736
N = 2,962
N = 295
American Indian or Native American
Asian, Asian American, or Pacific Islander
Black or African American
Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish
White
Other
Who Plans to Transfer
6
When students were asked what their intentions were regarding transfer plans, they responded with
varying levels of certainty. e largest percentage of students knew where they wanted to transfer and
what they wanted to study, but over half of respondents who indicated that they intend to transfer did not
have a clear vision of their transfer journey.
0 10 20 30 40
35%
Know where they want to transfer
and what they want to study
Know what they want to study but
not where they want to transfer
Not planning to transfer
Don’t know where they want to
transfer or what they want to study
Know where they want to transfer
but not what they want to study
28%
17%
12%
9%
N = 7,572
Students’ intentions regarding transfer
to a four-year college or university
Note: Percentages do not total 100% due to rounding.
What Students Say About Their
Plans Around Transfer
“Yeah, I do plan on transferring eventually, but I haven’t really
had any conversations with anybody about transferring yet. I
figure I’ll do that further down the line once it gets closer to it.”
–Student
7
Among students who intend to transfer, a large majority plan to earn an award at the community college
before transferring.
44%
18%
16%
6%
N = 6,251
Students’ plans for
earning a credential
before transferring
Limited to students who
reported intent to transfer
Earn an associate
degree
Earn a certificate
Earn both an
associate degree
and a certificate
16%
Unsure
Do not plan to
earn a credential
While most respondents who reported that they intend to transfer identied an in-state, public four-year
college or university as their rst choice of transfer institution, approximately one in ve students were
unsure what type of institution would be their rst choice.
65%
20%
6%
1%
N = 6,250
Students’ first
choice for transfer to
four-year college or
university
Limited to students who
reported intent to transfer
In-state, public
Not sure
8%
Out-of-state, public
In-state, private
Out-of-state, private
8
Over 80% of respondents who indicated
that they intend to transfer reported
having decided on a program, major, or
pathway of study.
Of those who said they know where
they want to transfer and what they
want to study, 93% had decided on a
pathway of study at their community
college. Even for those who reported
that they didn’t yet know where they
wanted to transfer but did know
what they wanted to study, 91% had
decided on a pathway of study at the
community college.
“Career exploration has
become a huge part
of that intake with new
students. From the point
of even checking in at our
welcome desk, if there
is even a hint that the
student isn’t quite sure why
they’re here, we refer them
immediately to Career and
Transfer Services.”
–Administrator
81%
Yes
19%
No
N = 6,290
Have you decided on a program, major,
or pathway of study at this college?
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
... had decided on a program, major,
or pathway of study
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
What Helps Students Know More
About Transfer Plans
Having a Program, Major, or Pathway of Study
93%
N = 2,651
of students who know where
they want to transfer and
what they want to study ...
50%
N = 651
of students who know where
they want to transfer but not
what they want to study ...
91%
N = 2,117
of students who know what
they want to study but not
where they plan to transfer ...
40%
N = 871
of students who don’t know
where they want to transfer
or what they want to study ...
9
Finding Useful Information on the College Website
Many respondents who indicated that
they intend to transfer reported that
the information about transfer on their
college’s website was useful. But perhaps
what is more important to note is that
38% of students said they were not
aware of information on their college’s
website about how to transfer.
e students who knew where they
wanted to transfer and what they
wanted to study were more likely to
nd the information on their college’s
website Very or Somewhat useful than
those who had less sure plans.
“My advisor actually gave
me the tools that I needed
to help me track my
progress on my own. …
They have a website where
you can … look at which
classes that you need … so
I go on that website and
also go on my four-year
college’s website in order
to track my progress, see
what classes that I needed,
and to make sure I’m not
wasting my credits as well.
I go on the website at least
once a month.”
–Student
57%
Very or
Somewhat
38%
I am not
aware of
information
5%
Not at all
N = 6,058
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
How useful is the information about how to
transfer to a four-year college or university
on this college’s website?
of students who know where
they want to transfer and
what they want to study ...
66%
N = 2,556
of students who know where
they want to transfer but not
what they want to study ...
62%
N = 619
of students who know what
they want to study but not
where they plan to transfer ...
51%
N = 2,047
of students who don’t know
where they want to transfer
or what they want to study ...
45%
N = 836
... found the information on
their college’s website Very or
Somewhat useful
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
10
Talking With Someone About Transfer Plans
Less than a third of respondents who
reported that they intend to transfer
said a sta member or instructor had
talked to them about the transfer
application process.
Students who reported knowing where
they wanted to transfer and what they
wanted to study were almost twice
as likely to have spoken to someone
at the college about the process for
transferring than were students who
said they didn’t know where they
wanted to transfer or what they
wanted to study.
However, 64% of students who reported
knowing where they wanted to transfer
and what they wanted to study had not
talked to a sta member or instructor
about the transfer application process—
indicating that their plans might not
actually be fully realized.
“They didn’t really talk to
me directly about … what
courses I needed to take,
but they directed me
towards a website of the
university that I’d like to go
to—their website that has all
the prereqs and everything
that I can take, and it has all
the transfer credits and if the
class transfers over or not.”
–Student
of students who know where
they want to transfer and
what they want to study ...
36%
N = 2,654
of students who know where
they want to transfer but not
what they want to study ...
31%
N = 656
of students who know what
they want to study but not
where they plan to transfer ...
26%
N = 2,116
of students who don’t know
where they want to transfer
or what they want to study ...
19%
N = 872
... said a sta member or instructor
had talked to them about the
application process
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
Has a sta member or instructor at this college talked
with you about the application process for transferring
to a four-year college or university?
30%
Yes
70%
No
N = 6,297
Limited to students who reported intent to transfer
11
When asked who they were most likely to rely on for guidance about transferring to a four-year college
or university, roughly the same percentage of respondents said friends, family, or other students as those
who said instructors at the college or sta at the college. e smallest group of students said they were most
likely to rely on the guidance of someone who works at the potential transfer institution.
Older students were more likely than traditional-age students to rely on sta and instructors for guidance
(67% vs. 56%). Traditional-age students were more likely to rely on friends, family, or other students for
guidance (30% vs. 18%).
N = 6,007
Most likely source
for guidance about
transferring
Limited to students who
reported intent to transfer
29%
Instructors at
the college
28%
Sta at the college
29%
Friends, family, or
other students
14%
Sta from potential
four-year college
or university
Why More Guidance Is Needed
About Transfer
12
“Transfer is very dierent depending on the student, so it
takes a very holistic approach, and a very individualized
approach for each student. The ideal is the earlier they
know, the better, the more we can plan that out, but even
with those later students, depending on the program,
sometimes we can make it work smoothly.”
–Advisor
“If I have a student that is planning to transfer to a four-
year institution … we have a list of transfer advisors
from many local four-year institutions. Students can
get in touch with that four-year advisor right away to
ensure that all of the classes that they’re taking at the
community college level will in fact transfer into the
bachelor’s degree program at that four-year institution.”
–Advisor
e data presented in this report illustrate that certain factors correlate with whether students who
intend to transfer know where they want to transfer and what they want to study when they get there.
e data also reveal that many students are not talking about their transfer intentions with faculty or sta
at the college.
What we can’t know from these data is whether the transfer plans students have are realistic. Even when
students know where they want to transfer and what they want to study, do they know the requirements
for transfer to their institution of choice? Do they know if their transfer institution and major plans are
aligned? Do they know exactly what courses they need to take for the credits to count toward that major?
What about those who reported knowing where they want to transfer but not what they want to study?
Are they putting the cart before the horse? For the 65% of students who plan to transfer to an in-state,
public university, do they know that meeting transfer requirements won’t necessarily guarantee them
admission into every institution in the state? We will only be able to know the answers to questions like
these by talking to students early and oen. By doing so we can help manage their expectations and
provide them with crucial pieces of the transfer puzzle they may be missing.
13
»
Are our goals for student transfer reected in the college’s strategic plan?
»
Do we know which of our entering students plan to transfer? How do we collect this
information?
»
When does someone at the college rst talk with students about their transfer plans?
»
How do we track and share data with members of the college community about the students
who intend to transfer? Are the data disaggregated?
»
Does our college have designated staff to lead transfer initiatives?
»
How do we encourage and train faculty and staff to talk with students about transfer
opportunities?
»
How do we share transfer information on the college website? How do we know if the
information on the website is clear and easy to navigate for students?
»
Have transfer pathways been developed for students interested in transfer?
»
Are our academic programs aligned with transfer outcomes?
»
Are our transfer-seeking students completing or transferring with excess credits?
»
Are we discussing transfer opportunities for our students with leaders at four-year colleges and
universities?
»
Do we have permanent space designated at our college for four-year transfer partners to meet
with and advise our students?
FOR PRESIDENTS AND SENIOR LEADERS
»
How do we help new students explore career and transfer options and opportunities at the
beginning of the academic year?
»
Does our advising include in-depth conversations about career goals, degree plans, transfer
opportunities, and commitments outside of college?
FOR ADVISORS, COUNSELORS, AND OTHER STAFF
Questions for Consideration
14
»
Are you aware of challenges the college is experiencing in its work with transfer-intending
students? If not, how can you engage with the college president to learn more?
»
How are you supporting the college in its strategic planning around transfer?
»
How are you advocating for the college in the community about the transfer opportunities
it offers students?
FOR TRUSTEES
FOR FACULTY
»
Do we have the necessary knowledge to talk to students about transfer opportunities? If not, do
we know where to direct students for support?
»
Are there classroom activities we can utilize to help students explore potential career interests so
that they have a clearer idea of what they want to study?
»
What opportunities can we create for students to utilize transfer support services?
»
Does every student in every program have a clear plan for program completion and employment
or transfer?
»
Does every student who plans to transfer have a clear plan for transfer, including what they want
to study, the college they want to attend, and the requirements for entering that program of
study at that college?
»
Do all of our transfer-seeking students meet with an advisor every term?
15
CCCSE National Advisory Board
cccse.org/national-advisory-board
Dr. Daniel J. Phelan, Chair
President/CEO
Jackson College (MI)
Dr. Marcia J. Ballinger
President
Lorain County Community College (OH)
Dr. Michael A. Baston
President
Cuyahoga Community College (OH)
Dr. Walter G. Bumphus
President and CEO
American Association of Community
Colleges (AACC)
Dr. Rufus Glasper
President and CEO
League for Innovation in the Community College
Dr. Steven R. Gonzales
Chancellor
Maricopa Community Colleges (AZ)
Dr. Leigh Goodson
President & CEO
Tulsa Community College (OK)
Dr. Rob Johnstone
Founder & President
National Center for Inquiry & Improvement (NCII)
Dr. Tyjaun A. Lee
Vice Chancellor for Administrative Services
Metropolitan Community College (MO)
Dr. Russell Lowery-Hart
Chancellor
Austin Community College District (TX)
Dr. Phillip W. Neal
President and CEO
Southcentral Kentucky Community & Technical
College (KY)
Dr. John E. Roueche
Professor and Director, John E. Roueche Center for
Community College Leadership, College of Education
Kansas State University
Dr. Joe Schaer
President
Laramie County Community College (WY)
Dr. Carol S. Spalding
President
Rowan-Cabarrus Community College (NC)
Ann-Marie Stephenson
Sr. Director, Business Development & Client Relations
Educational Testing Service
Dr. Leonard D. Taylor, Jr.
Director
National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE)
Dr. Lynn Tincher-Ladner
President and CEO
Phi eta Kappa
Dr. Vincent Tinto
Distinguished University Professor Emeritus
Syracuse University
Dr. A Y. Wiggins
Managing Director, Charles A. Dana Center
e University of Texas at Austin
Dr. Daria J. Willis
President
Howard Community College (MD)
16
Endnotes
1 National Center for Education Statistics. (2023). Annual earnings by educational attainment. https://
nces.ed.gov/programs/coe/indicator/cba
2 National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. (September 20, 2022). Tracking transfer. https://
nscresearchcenter.org/tracking-transfer/
3 CCCSE. (2022). Survey of Entering Student Engagement - 2022 Cohort. 2022 Frequency Distributions
– Main Survey. https://www.ccsse.org/sense/survey/reports/standard/2022/sense2022_coh_
freqs_allstu.pdf
4 CCCSE. (2023). Community College Survey of Student Engagement – 2023 Cohort. 2023 Frequency
Distributions – Main Survey. https://www.ccsse.org/survey/reports/2023/standard_reports/
ccsse_2023_coh_freqs_allstu.pdf
5 Community College Research Center. (2021). Community college transfer [Policy fact sheet]. https://
ccrc.tc.columbia.edu/media/k2/attachments/community-college-transfer.pdf
6 Monaghan, D. B., & Attewell, P. (2015). e community college route to the bachelor’s degree.
Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 37(1), 70–91. https://doi.org/10.3102/0162373714521865
7 Causey, J., Cohen, J., Gardner, A., Karamarkovich, S., Kim, H., Lee, S., Randolph, B., Ryu, M., and
Shapiro, D. (March 2023). Transfer and progress: Fall 2022 Report. National Student Clearinghouse
Research Center. https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/TransferProgressFall22.pdf
8 e Chronicle of Higher Education. (2023). Transforming transfer policies. https://www.chronicle.
com/featured/student-success/transforming-college-transfer-policies
9 Shapiro, D., Dundar, A., Huie, F., Wakhungu, P. K., Bhimdiwali, A., Nathan, A., & Youngsik, H.
(2018, July). Transfer and mobility: A national view of student movement in postsecondary institutions,
Fall 2011 Cohort (Signature Report No. 15). National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.
https://nscresearchcenter.org/wp-content/uploads/Signature-Report-15.pdf
CCCSE is a service and research initiative of the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy in the College
of Education at e University of Texas at Austin. By delivering “aha” moments about the student experience
based on insights that matter, CCCSE assists institutions and policymakers in using information to promote
improvements in student learning, persistence, and attainment.
© 2023 Permission granted for unlimited copying with appropriate citation.
Please cite this report as follows: CCCSE. (2023). Helping community college students climb the transfer ladder.
https://cccse.org/NR2023.
