An investigation of the student experiences and institutional practices affecting spring-semester community college transfer students

Abstract

The majority of the present research conducted on community college transfer students has focused on students who transfer at the start of the fall semester. However, many four-year institutions also admit transfer students to matriculate in the spring semester. These students enroll mid-year and generally do not receive even the limited services provided to fall semester transfer students. To explore the spring semester transfer process, students’ experiences were studied through focus groups, and institutional practices were examined through personal interviews with administrators and staff of various departments on campus involved in the transfer process.

The results indicated that the majority of the concerns of spring transfer students were in the academic and personal category. The social aspect of the transfer process was discussed the least, but was an issue that continued to affect the transfer students after seven weeks at the institution under analysis. Although fewer in number, there were also comments regarding experiences that promoted all three aspects of the transfer process, especially in the academic category.

The institutional policy most affecting the transfer process was the time frame between the date of application, transfer credit evaluation, admission notification, and actual enrollment at the institution. The deadlines imposed by the institution created many of the impediments described by the students. However, students assumed some responsibility in the process, specifically related to the date they applied for admission, and the date on which they requested a final transcript from the transfer institution