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Transferring from a community college to another institution can be difficult, but Elizabethtown College has begun an ambitious initiative to create partnerships with 10 additional community colleges that will make the transfer process easier.
Etown has preexisting transfer agreements with Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC) and Reading Area Community College (RACC), and, in 2019, Etown announced a new agreement with Harford Community College in Maryland. Etown has begun tentative talks with nine other community colleges, located in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Delaware, according to Vice President of Enrollment Management John Champoli.
These agreements can take up to a year to finalize, as the plan is to create a type of agreement that breaks down how many credits will transfer from the community college on a program-by-program basis.
“Community colleges and their students prefer program-by-program articulation,” Champoli said. “So you know that if you are studying engineering, you know which courses will transfer and where they will fit here.”
A major concern for transfer students is how many credits will be transferred, as this impacts how long it takes students to graduate and how much college costs. When there is uncertainty in the transfer credit amounts, the process of transferring is far more challenging. There can be confusion in switching from a three-credit system, which many community colleges use, to a four-credit system, which Etown uses.
By establishing relationships with community colleges, the process becomes easier and more streamlined.
“If we can address those [main concerns] and remove stumbling blocks, that’s going to be a huge help for these students,” Champoli said.
Developing these agreements requires a lot of communication between faculty and staff at both institutions. At Etown, Associate Director of Admissions Gretchen Camp and Senior Director of Admissions Adam Smith, as well as Registrar Beverly Schmalhofer and Asst. Registrar and VA Coordinator Kelly Boutsikaris, are all heavily involved in the process. In addition, faculty play a significant role to determine how transfer students fit within their programs.
“The faculty have been absolutely terrific in terms of creating these transfer check sheets,” Champoli said. “It maps out how if you want to study in Y program, and you go to this community college, when you come here, how do your transfer credits fit, and where do they fit in that four year sequence?”
Beyond partnerships with community colleges, Etown has been building relationships with pipeline programs to improve diversity at the College.
Currently, Etown is working with Attollo Prep and hosting 26 students in a six-week program that provides a variety of college prep activities and college search guidance. Etown is also working with the Goals & Assists program in association with the Snider Hockey Program to reach out to and help students in inner city Philadelphia.
