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In STEM education, many 4-year colleges and universities now get most of their students from community colleges. Students who transfer from community colleges, especially those who are underrepresented, often face problems, such as deciding whether or not to transfer, getting academic and non-academic support during the transfer, and finding a job. Also, program advisors at both 2-year and 4-year colleges and universities face problems because they need to know how their students make transfer decisions and how to help them be successful post-transfer. A data-driven and survey-based study will help establish a solid understanding of the underlying elements contributing to these challenges. In this paper, the researchers first conduct a literature review to identify the critical personal and academic factors that influence the transfer decision, particularly for students from traditionally disadvantaged groups. Secondly, an exploratory analysis of these factors was performed by inviting a small group of computing major students from both community colleges and universities to participate in a survey that includes a wide range of questions, from demographics and pre-transfer decisions to post-transfer performance. The preliminary findings indicated that financial challenges, university reputation, university location, job prospects, and family expectations are the primary factors influencing student transfer decisions. The findings of the study can be beneficial to underrepresented transfer students, their advisors, and other stakeholders in higher education.
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Assessing the Academic and Social Growth of STEM Transfer Students
Community college transfer students face unique hurdles when they attend a 4-year university. Universities usually cost more than community colleges, 4-year colleges are often located in a different community from where the transfer student lives, and academic expectations are different from community colleges to universities. To help fix the academic achievement gap between students entering as freshman and transfer students, Stony Brook University started the Academic and Social STEM Excellence for Transfer Students (ASSETS) program. ASSETS recruits community college transfer students from low income, marginalized communities and provides them with a scholarship, a 2-week math bootcamp, career counseling, and gives them a natural cohort of students to have a community on campus. Our initial findings show that ASSETS helps the students afford college and relieve a major stress of attending university. After the bootcamp, the students had a group of friends and mentors to advise them on academic and career decisions, help them navigate SBU, and support them during challenges.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1643671
- PAR ID:
- 10322764
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- American Society for Engineering Education
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- https://doi.org/10.18260/1-2--36711
