How to Win Friends and Influence Transfer Credit Policy

How to Win Friends and Influence Transfer Credit Policy Lee Furbeck, Ph.D. University of Kansas 2013 AACRAO Transfer Conference

Transfer Credit Policies • Does your institution have clear policies in place for all situations? • Is everyone at your institution who should be aware of the policies? • Does everyone consistently adhere to the policies? • Are your policies actual policies or practices? • Are your policies accessible and easy to find? • Can prospective students and advisors from other institutions easily understand your policies?

Policy Creation and Approval • Where are transfer credit policies created and approved? • Governmental bodies • System level • Institutional level • Academic units within the institution • Non-academic units within the institution • It depends… • Staff in the cubicles • Who knows where they came from! • Policies? What policies?

Many of us inherited existing policies. Some of us have implemented new policies. Others may suspect that policies need to be created or changed. Here’s your chance to see how you institution’s policies (or lack thereof) compare to others. A Few questions about Your transfer credit policies

What makes a transcript official? • Issued to the student • Faxed from the school • Faxed from the student • Mailed from the school • Printed from the school Web portal • Electronic transcript • Hand-delivered in a sealed envelope

Do you require official transcripts from each school attended? • Yes, all of them • Only those attended after high school • Only those where credit was earned • No • Varies • Unsure/No policy

What is your policy on accreditation? • Not a deciding factor by itself • Must be accredited • Must be regionally accredited • Courses from non-accredited schools must be appealed • Other • Unsure/No policy

AACRAO’s Transfer Credit Practices Available at aacrao.org for members and in hard copy. Updated annually.

What grades are acceptable for transfer credit? • C or higher only • C- or higher only • All passing grades • Pass/Credit • Pass/Credit if C/C- or better • Varies • Unsure/no policy

What is your policy on mode of delivery? • On-ground or hybrid courses only • On-ground courses only • On-ground courses for labs • Not a factor • Varies • Unsure/No policy

What is your policy on time limits for transfer work? • No limits • 10 years • 5 years • Time limit only for select courses • Varies by major • Unsure/No policy

There is such variety in how schools calculate grades and credits earned when repeat coursework is involved. It deserves its own section! Course repeats

Repeated transfer course – same school. What counts? • Cum GPA on transcript • First instance • Last instance • Best grade • Most hours • Most beneficial • Average grades • Other formula • Varies • Unsure/No policy

Repeated course – different sources. What counts? • First instance • Last instance • Best grade • Most hours • Most beneficial • Average grades • Other formula • Varies • Unsure/No policy

Repeated course – one instance at your school. What counts? • Your institution’s course • First instance • Last instance • Best grade • Most hours • Most beneficial • Average grades • Other formula • Varies • Unsure/No policy

How are you handling the growing number of sources of transfer credit? Non-traditional credit

Do you award credit for… • Advanced Placement • International Baccalaureate • CLEP • DANTES • Departmental exams (your school) • Departmental exams (elsewhere) • High school courses • “Double Dipping”

Do you award credit for… • Work experience • Life experience • Job-training certification • Military training • MOOC’s • Non-Institutional courses • Other

Did you find yourself answering “unsure” or “varies” a lot? Are your students frequently surprised? If so, you may need to overhaul of your transfer credit policies! A few summary questions to ask as we near the end

Are your policies well-defined and easy to interpret? • Absolutely! • Most of them • It’s a toss up • Uh, maybe some • No, they aren’t

Are your policies transfer-friendly? • Yes • Most of them • Some yes, some no • Not so much • Definitely not

Transfer-Friendly Policies • Easy to find • Easy to understand • Consistent amongst units • Consistently enforced • Fair • Appeal-able

Without Them… • Students take longer to earn a degree • Students may become disheartened and drop out before earning a credential or degree • Debt levels rise as student takes more courses • Additional federal funding is required • Courses are repeated unnecessarily • Legislators and Boards intervene

Forum for High-Level Discussion about Transfer? • Yes • Kind of • No • Unsure

Making the Case for a Council • Poor relationships between sending/receiving institutions • Fewer students transferring successfully • Increased transfer activity or reliance on transfer students to meet goals • Areas for growth • Lack of communication among units • Lack of or much variation in policies • Legislative mandates (or threat of)

Articulation Coordination Council Charge The purpose of the Council is to enhance programmatic and institutional articulation between Iowa State University and institutions and programs that are significant or potentially significant sources of transfer students to Iowa State University with primary focus on Iowa Community Colleges.The Council's membership is to include representatives from- • Admissions • Provost Division • Student Affairs • Each Academic College (approximately half should be faculty members) • Faculty Senate • GSB (preferably a transfer student)

Transfer and Articulation Policy Council Charge • The purpose of the Council is to enhance the transfer experience by enhancing relationships with sending institutions and ensuring clear and just evaluation of transfer work. The Council's membership is to include representatives from- • Admissions • Provost Division • Enrollment Management • Each Professional School and the College • Transfer Student Association

Discussion and Next Steps • How do statewide transfer systems impact transfer credit policy? • How do articulation agreements impact transfer credit policy? • What metrics do you use to measure the extent to which your policies are transfer-friendly? • Is being transfer-friendly a priority on your campus? • Do you have a central location online and/or on-ground for transfer credit policies? • Is your institution likely to steer students away from schools not transfer-friendly? • What next steps do you plan to take as a result of this discussion?

Thanks for sharing! Lee F. Furbeck lfurbeck@ku.edu

How to Win Friends and Influence Transfer Credit Policy