What We Know About Transfer Students At CUNY - PowerPoint Presentation

What We Know About Transfer Students At CUNY BTAG meeting JANUARY 14, 2019

Presentation outline 1. Transfer pathways 2. Intent to transfer 3. Post-transfer outcomes4. Future research 1

Since 2001, freshman baccalaureate cohorts have been flat or decreasing, while transfer cohorts grew. Trends in New Student Enrollment in Baccalaureate Programs

There is a large volume and variety of transfer activity throughout the system. 3 220* transfer out of CUNY 340* transfer out of CUNY8,981 transfer into CUNY 8,663 transfer into CUNY * Approximate expected annual transfer out number based on average transfer out of fall freshmen cohorts (associates: 2006-2008; baccalaureate: 2003-2005) Transfer Volume in Academic Year 2011-12* Associate 3,572 transfer between CUNY AA programs Baccalaureate 3,354 transfer between CUNY BA programs 12,156 students transferred from AA to BA 2,168 students transferred from BA to AA

Most incoming baccalaureate transfer students come from 2-year colleges. Origin of transfer to CUNY baccalaureate program, 2017-18: 54%: CUNY associate/certificate program or other 2-year college 15%: CUNY baccalaureate program or other 4-year college 31%: other outside institutions   Source: IPEDS OM table 4

Most CUNY associate students want to earn a bachelor’s degree. A survey of First-time Associate Degree seeking Freshmen showed that around 75% of respondents had an educational goal of a bachelor’s degree or higher. In addition, 43.8% of respondents stated that they would like to earn their bachelor’s degree at a CUNY school. 5

Fewer than 20% of CUNY associate students actually transfer to baccalaureate programs. 6 Of the Fall 2011 associate degree seeking cohort, 19% of students eventually transferred to a baccalaureate program. In Fall 2015, 79% of the 2-year CUNY students who applied for transfer to a CUNY 4-year college were admitted to a CUNY 4-year college. Of those students who were admitted to a CUNY 4-year college, only 69% actually enrolled in any 4-year college (66% at CUNY and 3 % at other 4-year colleges). 7% remained at the same 2-year school 22% enrolled in no college or had unknown enrollment

How do transfer students compare to native freshmen in terms of graduation rates? 7 Comparing all transfer students to FTF who entered a BA program in fall 2005: transfer students are 6 percentage points more likely to graduate by the spring of 2009. But not a valid comparison Transfer students have an average of 50 credits Comparing to FTF w/30-60 credits Transfer students are nearly 25 percentage points less likely to graduate

Relative Probability of Graduation, Transfer Student vs. FTF, by Controls Added 8 Controlling for students’ background characteristics explains most, but not all of the gap between transfer and native freshman graduation rates.

Transfer students earn a lower GPA in their first semester and first year of the baccalaureate program than native baccalaureate students, even when controlling for demographics and high school preparation . *Source: OPR Research Brief “Do Transfer Students Performs as Well As First-Time Freshmen”. Regression model includes controls for demographics, high school performance, college enrollment patterns, cohort year and college.

Transfer students pass fewer credits in their first semester and first year than freshmen, even when controlling for demographics and high school performance. They also appear to decrease their course load in the second semester. Regression-Adjusted Mean Credits Attempted and Passed, Freshmen Compared to Transfers* *Source: OPR Research Brief “Do Transfer Students Performs as Well As First-Time Freshmen”. Regression model includes controls for demographics, high school performance, college enrollment patterns, cohort year and college.

11 Transfer students on average earn lower GPAs in their first semester in baccalaureate programs than they had earned in their associate programs, but not all transfer students’ GPAs decrease. Mean Cumulative GPA in Associate Program Compared to Mean first-semester GPA in Bachelor’s Program* * Students who started in a CUNY associate program in Fall 2010 and transferred within 4 years Decrease in GPA : % transfer students: 0.64 Mean decrease: 0.79 Increase in GPA: % transfer students: 0.36 Mean increase: 0.43

Although overall rates of satisfaction are similar between transfers and “native” freshmen at CUNY, transfer students are less satisfied with academic services. Satisfaction with Academic Support Services: senior colleges, Natives compared to transfers Source: CUNY’s 2014 Student Experience Survey

Credit loss also hurts transfer students’ probability of graduation. Monaghan & Attewell (2015) used data from a national longitudinal survey to investigate the process by which students transfer from a community college to a 4-year college. They found: Students lose credits in the transfer process: 28% of transfers lose between 10% to 89% of their credits, and 14% of transfers lose over 90% of their credits. Credit loss significantly hampers graduation chances; students who have less than half their credits transfer are less likely to graduate than students who have all or almost all of their credits transfer. They estimate that if transfer students did not experience credit loss, BA attainment rates among community college transfer students would increase 9 percentage points, from 45% to 54%. 13

Qualitative research gives insight into transfer students’ unique characteristics and needs, both academic and outside the classroom. She made six recommendations to colleges to increase transfer student success: Get Students on Track Academically Promote Sustainable PerformanceShare Clear Information Provide Flexible and Helpful Support Create Opportunities for College Connection Build on Students’ Sense of Commitment 14 She found: Problems with credit evaluation Major declaration challenges Inconsistent or ineffective communication Inconsistent academic support services Limited availability of campus support Challenging social and emotional context In 2016, Christina Ciocca Eller conducted 200 interviews with students, faculty, and administrative staff at three CUNY four-year colleges. Source: “Increasing Success for Two-to-Four-Year Transfer Students Within The City University of New York”

Future research at CUNY will build on both existing quantitative and qualitative research on transfer student pathways and experiences. Financial aid relationship with retention Transfer Opportunity Project (IES grant) Community College Students Majoring in the Humanities: Transfer and Attainment of Bachelor’s Degrees (Mellon grant) 15

Appendix 16

ASAP students transferred to baccalaureate programs at higher rates than non-ASAP students and earned their bachelor’s degrees at higher rates. 17 Source : Six-Year Outcomes of ASAP Students: Transfer and Degree Attainment, Diana Strumbos and Zineta KolenovicMethod: Propensity score matching for first two ASAP first-time freshmen cohorts (fall 2007 and fall 2009)

Fewer than 20% of associate students transfer to baccalaureate programs, with enrollment being a larger barrier than admission. 18 % Associate degree students who transferred to a baccalaureate program F07 F08 F09 F10 F11 Comm. 18.8 17.2 18.9 20.4 20.3 Senior 14.7 15.6 13.9 14.1 14.2 Total 17.6 16.8 17.5 18.9 18.9 Allocation of 2-year students applying for transfer to a 4-year college, fall 2015, N=10261 Allocated to N % 4-yr 8,105 79.0 2-yr 810 7.9 no college 1,346 13.1 Total 10,261 100.0 Enrollment among those who were allocated to a 4-yr college, N=8105 Enrolled in N % CUNY 4-yr 5,376 66.3 CUNY same 2-yr 567 7.0 CUNY other 2-yr 140 1.7 Other 4-yr 215 2.7 Other 2-yr 10 0.1 No college 817 10.1 Unknown 980 12.1 Total 8,105 100.0