In California, if community college students take certain courses and get a certain GPA (usually 2.8 or 3.0 or higher) they can pursue programs that guarantee admission to select four year universities. Not all four year insitituions offer such a program, but many do. Some majors, such as engineering or business, may also limit the availability of guaranteed slots. The key to these programs is identifying early in one's community college career that they want to transfer to a particular school (or two) in a particular major. Once this has been identified students can go to their community college's transfer center to find out if there exists a transfer agreement with the schools they are interested in. As I mentioned, not all four year institutions participate in such programs because the demand would far exceed available space, but many do.
In the University of California, UC Davis, UC Santa Cruz, UC Irvine, and UC Riverside have active agreement or guarantee programs. As an example of what one Transfer Admission Agreement program looks like, see UC Davis. In the California State University, many CSUs have guarantee or agreement programs. It is imperative to check with the community college you plan on attending to find out what campuses they have agreemements with. If you really want to go to a particular school, purusing an agreement brings a sense of comfort and accomplishment. Outside of California, many community colleges partner with local four year institutions to ensure a healthy flow of students from the community college to the universities. As always, those who ask are rewarded. Don't wait until the last minute to inquire. People at the community colleges are there to help students be successful. Community colleges guage success in many ways, one of them being the number of students who transfer to four year universities.
Showing posts with label community colleges. Show all posts
Showing posts with label community colleges. Show all posts
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
The Community College Path
Community colleges offer students an alternative path to getting a Bachelor's degree. A former community college student myself, I can attest to the excellence of the education I received in preparing to transfer to a four-year university. Community colleges allow you to take preparatory work towards your major as well as complete general education courses to satisfy graduation requirements. While at the community college one can also earn an Associate's degree as well as certificates in applied fields (ranging from television and radio broadcasting to biotechnology). Community colleges are thus a wonderful opportunity for students unsure about their desire to immediately go to a four year institution out of high school.
One of the primary reasons students attend community college is affordability. Consider the case of California, where I live. At a California community college, resident tuition is $26 per unit (assuming 12 units per semester, that would be $624 per year). At the California State University, resident tuition is a little more than $3000 per year, and at the University of California, it is around $6200 per year. Because of a myriad of reasons, people are forced to pay for tuition and books out of their own or their parents' pockets. Given that, community college looks much more affordable. Though affordability is important, it is not the sole determinant in choosing a community college.
Another reason students choose community college over four-year institutions has to do with the different admission requirements for high school and community college applicants. High school applicants to the University of California and the California State University must take exams such as the SAT (or ACT with Writing) and SATII (though in some instances no exam is required, but is recommeded). For community college applicants no exam is required for admission. Likewise, the GPA requirement for high school students coupled with the exam requirements is more stringent than it is for community college students.
Meeting minimum requirements, as is well documented, does not guarantee admission, especially at the high school level. While this is also true of community college admission, it is less difficult for community college students to get admitted to the most competitive campuses, e.g. UC Berkeley, UCLA, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, San Diego State, etc... While getting into some of these campuses with less than a 3.5 GPA in high school might be difficult, at community college, it is a slightly different case. With a 3.5 GPA in community college, plus all the required GE and major prepatory coursework, you stand a pretty good chance of being admitted to highly competitive four-year institutions. The competitiveness is still there, though it is not nearly as intense.
Tomorrow's post will focus on one of the gems of the community college, the Transfer Admission Agreement or Transfer Admission Guarantee.
One of the primary reasons students attend community college is affordability. Consider the case of California, where I live. At a California community college, resident tuition is $26 per unit (assuming 12 units per semester, that would be $624 per year). At the California State University, resident tuition is a little more than $3000 per year, and at the University of California, it is around $6200 per year. Because of a myriad of reasons, people are forced to pay for tuition and books out of their own or their parents' pockets. Given that, community college looks much more affordable. Though affordability is important, it is not the sole determinant in choosing a community college.
Another reason students choose community college over four-year institutions has to do with the different admission requirements for high school and community college applicants. High school applicants to the University of California and the California State University must take exams such as the SAT (or ACT with Writing) and SATII (though in some instances no exam is required, but is recommeded). For community college applicants no exam is required for admission. Likewise, the GPA requirement for high school students coupled with the exam requirements is more stringent than it is for community college students.
Meeting minimum requirements, as is well documented, does not guarantee admission, especially at the high school level. While this is also true of community college admission, it is less difficult for community college students to get admitted to the most competitive campuses, e.g. UC Berkeley, UCLA, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, San Diego State, etc... While getting into some of these campuses with less than a 3.5 GPA in high school might be difficult, at community college, it is a slightly different case. With a 3.5 GPA in community college, plus all the required GE and major prepatory coursework, you stand a pretty good chance of being admitted to highly competitive four-year institutions. The competitiveness is still there, though it is not nearly as intense.
Tomorrow's post will focus on one of the gems of the community college, the Transfer Admission Agreement or Transfer Admission Guarantee.
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