More Like this

1. Experiences of Computer Science Transfer Students

   https://doi.org/10.1145/3230977.3231004  

   Kwik, Harrison; Xie, Benjamin; Ko, Andrew J. (January 2018, ACM International Computing Education Research Conference)

   About half of recent computer and information science graduates attended community college at some point. Prior work on transfer students in general suggests that the transfer process can engage people from underrepresented communities, but can also be academically and socially "shocking". However, we know little about the experiences of transfer students in computer science in particular. We used the Laanan-Transfer Student Questionnaire (L-TSQ) to survey 25 transfer students and 135 native (non-transfer) students and conducted follow-up interviews with 8 transfer students attending a large public 4-year university in a city with significant technology industry presence. We found that while transfer students were more diverse demographically, the support of the university for transfer student orientation tended to mitigate social shocks of transferring. This did not, however, eliminate gaps in academic performance. These findings suggest that there are other non-social factors that influence academic performance that CS programs must support to equitably engage students who transfer. 

   more » « less
2. Investigation of Computing Transfer Students Success

   Ty, Cheyenne; Vargas, Kay; Wan, Yun; Wang, Xiwei; Aggarwal, Palvi; Rayana, Shebuti; Bogle, Sherrene (October 2024, Journal of computing sciences in colleges)
3. Experiences Of Faculty Mentoring Engineering Transfer Students

   Nikkhah, Deniz; Copp, David A; Denaro, Kameryn; Buswell, Natascha; Diggs, Gregory; Lee, Hye_Rin; Valdevit, Lorenzo; Dicke, Anna-Lena (June 2022, 2022 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition)
4. Engaging Transfer Students in a College of Engineering

   Christy Wheeler West, Eric J. (January 2023, ASEE Annual Conference and Exposition)

   The LINK scholarship program at the University of South Alabama is funded by an NSF S-STEM grant, awarding scholarships to low-income students transferring from community colleges in the Gulf Coast region to complete degrees in chemical, civil, computer, electrical, or mechanical engineering. The program provides financial support and academic mentoring to foster student success and optimize time to degree completion after transfer. Part of that effort includes providing pre-transfer advice through interactions with faculty and advisors at the regional community colleges. A further objective is to promote transfer student integration into the college, as this is expected to enhance academic achievement and professional development. This engagement is encouraged through faculty mentorship with frequent meetings, a cohort-building academic success seminar, and expected participation in engineering-focused student organizations. Our project includes a mixed-methods study to improve our understanding of what support mechanisms effectively integrate transfer students in our college, and how students perceive that integration to enhance their academic and professional development. Early data analysis is presented here. Student surveys indicate that they believe that peers in their classes and their assigned faculty advisors have the greatest impact on their integration and academic success. For professional development, the transfer students find that internships the most importance, followed by participation in student organizations. 

   more » « less
5. Transfer Stigma: Development of a Multi–Dimensional Scale for Community College Transfer Students

   https://doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2024.2368493  

   Chen, Yu; Liu, Jingwen (June 2024, Community College Journal of Research and Practice)

   Transfer stigma refers to a type of stigma associated with students’ transfer status and/or their community college background. It plays a significant role in post-transfer adjustment and may negatively impact post-transfer outcomes such as retention and obtaining a baccalaureate degree. This study focused on quantitatively measuring transfer stigma among transfer students attending a four-year institution. Drawing from previous studies, we developed a 13-item transfer stigma measure and included it in a transfer student survey. The survey data was collected from 450 current transfer students at a public, flagship four-year university in Louisiana. Through an exploratory factor analysis and a confirmatory factor analysis, we revealed a four-factor structure of transfer stigma measures: internalized self-stigma, perceptions about community colleges, lack of support, and perceived judgment. Subsequent statistical analyses examined group differences in the degree of transfer stigma across various transfer student subgroups defined by transfer type, gender, race/ethnicity, age, and major. 

   more » « less