University Business - February 2012 - (Page 32)

Inquiring Minds Six questions will-be transfers are (or should be) asking—and how advisors are answering them. By Ann McClure for Central Ohio Technical College. Educating students on the in’s and out’s of these programs, as well as articulation agreements with private schools, “is a major opportunity across the board for Ohio,” she says. “There are so many different opportunities. It lies on us to articulate that information and put it out there.” Students may not realize it’s not just about credits being accepted, but about whether they will count toward core courses. “I warn them every school has different requirements and your AA won’t magically fit,” says Jennifer Alleman, assistant professor of counseling at Harrisburg Area Community College, Lancaster Campus (Pa.) “We help students select proper courses, but it’s up to the student to be in contact with the counseling office at the target school.” Receiving institutions often do their best to educate students, as well. Statewide articulation programs are mandates for public colleges and universities, but also something private institutions can use as guidance. Campus leaders at Eckerd College (Fla.), a private four-year institution, have equated the public courses to their own offerings, explains John Sullivan, dean of admissions. Students can find the information on the Eckerd website and either match courses themselves or apply for pre-evaluation. An issue Sullivan sees is students not understanding the difference between an AS degree and an AA degree and ensuring their target school will accept both. At Eckerd, a student with an AA will enroll as a junior, but only parts of the AS will be accepted. Central Ohio Technical College campuses have one-stop shops where students can ask an advisor about transfer options. ommunity colleges have always been a popular place for students to begin their higher education career. Often smaller, closer, and more affordable than their four-year counterparts, they can help students get accustomed to college-level work or simply save on tuition. The national goal of producing more college graduates has increased the focus on ensuring students actually transfer on. Keith Coates, a student services advisor at Columbus State Community College, Delaware Campus (Ohio), reports that they’re seeing a lot of students who want to transfer but may not know to where. Read on to learn about six less obvious questions transfer students should be asking, and what the answers can be. C 1. Will I get credit? With newspapers regularly running articles about students needing to start from scratch after transferring, this is one question students likely are asking. In Ohio, where public institutions have been charged with improving transferability, Transfer Assurance Guides (TAGs) designate classes that are portable, and with the Ohio Transfer Module, a subset of general ed classes will transfer en mass, explains Tara Houdeshell, director of gateway operations 32 | February 2012 2. Accreditation…what’s that? Since students don’t understand all the nuances in higher ed, they might not realize there is more to transferring credits than just course alignment. “We have a number of schools in the area that don’t have regional accreditation, and students plan to transfer there,” Coates says delicately. In those cases, he presents a broad discussion of what accreditation is and how it relates to universitybusiness.com http://www.universitybusiness.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of University Business - February 2012

University Business - February 2012
Contents
Editor's Note
College Index
Ad Index
Behind the News
Financial Aid
Campus CFO
Education Gateways
5 Things Administrators Must Know About E-commerce Now
There’s an App for That
Internet Technology
End Note

University Business - February 2012