California Community Colleges (CCC) and the California State University (CSU) systems recently started a transfer guarantee program for selected majors, where students can earn both an Associates Degree from a Community College and their Bachelor’s from a four year CSU, called the Associate’s Degree for Transfer. Basically, if students complete a set of required general education and lower division major courses, equalling 60 units, and an Associate’s Degree from the CCC in selected academic concentrations, then the receiving CSU and academic major department will guarantee the student admissions to the major and institution.
Here’s a few myth busters and facts about the new Associate’s Degree for Transfer Program:
- The program does NOT mean that students MUST complete an Associate’s Degree before transfer to a CSU. There are multiple pathways students can follow to transfer to the CSU>
- The Transfer Admissions Guarantee (TAG) agreements with the University of California (UC) are separate from the Associate’s Degree for Transfer program, which is specific to the CSU system.
- Community college students must choose a particular major in order to qualify for admissions to the CSU. Not every major is participating in the admissions guarantees.
- Not every CCC and every CSU campus are participating in the Associate’s Degree for Transfer Program.
Not only will students be readily admitted to colleges of their choice, for particular majors that are impacted, (i.e. there’s more students wanting to be a candidate for that academic concentration than space available), the Associate’s Degree for Transfer Program applicants may reduce the difficulty of being accepted into the major of their choice, as well.
Be sure to thoroughly investigate all opportunities for transfer admissions, as well as compare the advantages and disadvantages of multiple college campuses for a chosen academic major before applying. Then, a student (and their families) will know the value of a transfer admissions guarantee program, as well as the value of the investment in time and effort in particular academic concentrations.
Photo Credit: www.calstate.edu
