“Like a Freshman Who Didn’t Get a Freshman Orientation”: How Transfer Student Capital, Social Support, and Self-Efficacy Intertwine in the Transfer Student Experience

Community colleges and other open-access two-year campuses provide an important pathway to higher education; however, a surprisingly small proportion of these students successfully transfer to and graduate from a bachelor’s degree-granting institution. The present study examined barriers and challenges students faced as they built their sense of self-efficacy as transfer students. We conducted interviews with 65 prospective or recent transfer students, including “internal” transfers (moving from an open-access predominantly two-year campus to their university’s flagship campus) and “external” transfers (moving from a community college to the university’s most selective campus). Our results indicate that both internal and external transfer students experienced challenges in terms of obtaining accurate information about transfer (transfer student capital, or “TSC”), but these challenges were easier to overcome for internal transfers, in part due to their social support networks. While both sets of transfer students utilized social support networks as an informal source of TSC, internal transfer students reported a more extensive social support network. Gaining accurate information about transfer and being supported by members of their social networks seemed to boost self-efficacy for transfer as well as adjustment during the post-transfer experience period. Recommendations for sending and receiving institutions are provided.

Transfer Student Experiences and Identity Navigation in STEM: Overlapping Figured Worlds of Success

Successful transitions from community colleges to the university setting are essential for increasing the number of transfer students who complete science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degree programs. In this study, Holland’s framework of figured worlds was used to examine how transfer students pursuing STEM negotiated their identities in their transition to the university.

Pathway patterns mobility study of first time vs. transfer students in computer science and information technology programs at a public university

PurposePostsecondary institutions use metrics such as student retention and college completion rates to measure student success. Multiple factors affect the success of first time in college (FTIC) and transfer students. Transfer student success rates are significantly low, with most transfer students nationwide failing to complete their degrees in four-year institutions. The purpose of this study is to better understand the degree progression patterns of both student types in two undergraduate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) programs: computer science (CS) and information technology (IT). Recommendations concerning academic advising are discussed to improve transfer student success.Design/methodology/approachThis study describes how transfer student success can be improved by thoroughly analyzing their degree progression patterns. This study uses institutional data from a public university in the United States. Specifically, this study utilizes the data of FTIC and transfer students enrolled in CS and IT programs at the targeted university to understand their degree progression patterns and analyzes the program curricula using network science curricular analytics method to determine what courses in the curriculum require more assistance to retain students.FindingsThe major findings of this study are: (1) students’ degree mobility patterns within an institution differ significantly between transfer and FTIC students; (2) some similarities exist between the CS and IT programs in terms of transfer students' degree mobility patterns; (3) transfer students' performance in basic and intermediate level core courses contribute to differences in transfer students' mobility patterns.Originality/valueThis study introduces the concept of “mobility patterns” and examines student degree mobility patterns of both FTIC and transfer students in a large public university to improve the advising process for transfer students regarding courses and identifying secondary majors.

70 Identifying factors that play a significant role in the animal science transfer student experience

Transfer students make up 16.5% of the undergraduate population in the Animal Science (ANS) major, and transfer enrollment is on the rise. Transfers often face challenges that are different from their direct-from-high-school peers. The objective of this study was to determine the factors that affected the transfer transition from a previous institution to the ANS department. Based on focus group (n=6) feedback, a survey instrument was developed and piloted. Using pilot data, a factor analysis was performed and the instrument was tested for reliability. Once validated, the instrument was used to collect data from first semester ANS transfer students (n=47). No incentives were offered, and participation was voluntary. Between-factor Pearson correlations were estimated, and responses to scale questions were tallied. Significant negative correlations were observed between social integration and risk of attrition (r=-0.53, p< 0.01), and between social integration and academic struggle (r=-0.48, p< 0.01). Social integration was positively correlated with overall satisfaction within the ANS department (r=0.638, p< 0.01). Students who felt socially integrated were more confident academically, more comfortable at ISU, and were less likely to leave. Students had a positive view of the ANS department if they were involved in clubs and student organizations (r=0.42, p< 0.05). Transfers who were satisfied with instructor interactions tended to be more content with the overall transfer process (r=0.44, p< 0.01). Approximately 72% of respondents felt that paying for school created a lot stress in their life, but 52% felt satisfied with the financial assistance they received. Only half of the respondents reported that the pre-registration orientation helped prepare them for transfer to ISU, but 95.9% of ANS transfers reported that they understood the requirements for graduation. These data will inform policy and procedures related to transfer student onboarding and the promotion of social interactions with peers.

Exploring Influences of Policy Collisions on Transfer Student Access: Perspectives From Street-Level Bureaucrats

States and institutions increasingly rely on articulation agreements to streamline vertical transfer, although the effectiveness of those policies on transfer student outcomes remains unclear. To better understand this effectiveness, we explored a partnership between the College of Engineering at a mid-Atlantic research university and two community colleges located within the same state. We interviewed engineering faculty and academic advisors (i.e., the street-level bureaucrats who implement policy) to explore how an articulation agreement influences processes and policies related to coursework transfer. Our results revealed complexities in the implementation of the articulation policy as it collides with an enrollment management university policy that differs in purpose. Their collision has challenging implications for transfer students and for the faculty and advisors responsible for interfacing with those students.