SOC Degree Network System Pre-Conference Workshop Council of College and Military Educators (CCME) March 2017 SOC is a Department of Defense (DoD) contractor supporting government-sponsored education programs funded through a DoD-managed contract with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).

Colleges & Universities DNS Stakeholders Students College Choice & Informed Decisions Student Agreements Guaranteed Transferability Advocacy Counselors Tools & Resources Education & Guidance Colleges & Universities Visibility to Military Community Liaison between schools & services

Serving the Military-Connected Student Student Agreements Contract for degree Degree plan Guaranteed-Transferability between member schools in related Networks Transfer credit policy Non-traditional credit from military training and experience National Testing Programs (CLEP, DSST) Advocacy Academic Residency 25% of degree requirements 30% if degree offered completely online

Supporting the Counselor Resources, publications on SOC DNS Web site SOC DNS Handbooks (DNS-2 and DNS-4) College information pages Base locations Articulation Agreements Categorized Course Codes Transferability Tables (T-Tables)

Collaborating with Member Institutions Increased visibility within the military, voluntary-education community Demonstrated support of military-connected student Sharing of information regarding program choice, educational delivery methods for the military-connected student

The SOC Degree Network System What are the building blocks? Key features valued by Military Services: Guaranteed-Transferability Limited Academic Residency Decreased time to attainment Affordability  Student Agreements Collaborative System of Colleges & Universities   Graduate Survey Accessibility to and for Military Students Guaranteed Course Transferability within the DNS was a central feature for accelerating degree completion. By giving military students a widely recognized planning tool with multiple course options for completing remaining degree requirements, students could track their progress each semester or term. Career Related – incorporated into and identified in the DNS across all services, assist with transition

Current Networks in the SOC DNS Associate Degree Networks (SOC DNS-2) Applied Science & Technology Automotive Maintenance Business Administration Computer Studies Criminal Justice Electronics Technology General & Liberal Studies General Business Management Psychology Technical Management Bachelor’s Degree Networks (SOC DNS-4) Accounting Education/Instructional Development Health Services Management Homeland Security Human Resource Management Information Systems Management Marketing/Retailing

Course review & Category development Network Development Course review & Category development Designate major and major-related requirements Define Emerging Network Network Launch Peer review through Course Circulation Results (Courses and Degrees) listed on Web and in handbook New Network Development Align with emerging career fields Pre-Health Science, Cyber Security, Logistics, Aviation are priorities

SOC DNS Circulation Process Courses “tentatively” assigned Category Codes based on course content New course not added to Category Code or rejecting college’s course removed from Category Code General Education, major, and major-related courses reviewed Peer review: circulation process not 100% approved 100% approved Course is entered into T-Tables if degree meets 40% standard Process to determine two-way guaranteed transferability Peer review system 100% guaranteed two-way transferability within SOC DNS Course Category Codes. To determine if courses in specific subject areas at DNS member institutions are transferable to courses at other DNS institutions within the same areas. You will review your institution’s course with theirs and determine comparability based on content, level, credit, accreditation, etc. This slide illustrates both the creation of the Codes as well as how courses become assigned to the codes - it also showcases the effort that goes into any given circulation - from point of view of SOC staff and college staff. We develop some category codes internally and also bring in subject-matter experts when creating and revising multiple category codes in a field. We emphasize content in our tentative assignments of courses to category codes and primarily go by the course description in the catalog, or a syllabus if that does not provide enough information. Once courses are mapped to a category code, they go out to every other college with a course in or proposed for that category in a peer-review circulation process. 100% of colleges with courses in the category must agree on course additions to the category - reflecting the two-way guaranteed transferability system at the heart of the DNS. The challenge is in the outcome when only one college objects to the inclusion of another college’s course. In that case, we try to negotiate with the rejecting school; we look at the proposed and the rejecting school’s course to determine which is better fit; and we look at the impact our decision might have on other aspects, such as the percentage of major and major-related courses in any specific degree (wanting to keep all degrees in the system, wanting to maintain strong networks, wanting to sustain 40% transferability minimums)

New Network Development Ready for peer review NEW Network framework 21 institutions; 40 degrees ~ 150 courses recommended for transfer Health Science Foundations – 2 YR 26 institutions; 34 degrees 15 NEW course categories ~ 375 courses recommended for transfer Cybersecurity – 4 YR

Network Development - Next Phase Initial sorting of degrees 31 institutions; 96 degrees Applied Science & Technology – 2 YR Initial sorting of courses 34 institutions; 35 degrees Psychology – 2 YR Review M/MR guidelines 62 institutions; 76 degrees Health Services Management – 4 YR Create M/MR guidelines 37 institutions; 46 degrees Homeland Security – 4 YR

SOC is a Department of Defense (DoD) contractor supporting government-sponsored education programs funded through a DoD-managed contract with the American Association of State Colleges and Universities (AASCU).

SOC DNS Search Tool

SOC DNS Category Code Example

Student Agreements Serve as contract-for-degree for the student Source of valuable data collection that is reported by SOC to the Military Services Indicates viability of member institution’s participation in the SOC DNS Typically receive over 35,000 Student Agreements per year

Student Agreement Components College Information Student Information Degree Requirements Credit Hours Awarded Guaranteed Transferability

Graduate Survey Survey normally conducted in July/August Captures data from the previous academic year (July 1 through June 30) Reports number of military graduates by: Service SOC DNS Network (2/4 year level) Member Institution

SOC Troubleshooting SOC Academic Counseling Coordinator Troubleshooting Examples Clarification of SOC DNS policies and procedures Getting started or resuming pursuit of a college degree Locating a SOC DNS college and/or degree Assistance with requesting a Joint Services Transcript Guidance regarding service-related absences Information about the awarding of military training/experience for credit Advocating on behalf of students when Student Agreement issues arise

DNS Milestones Streamlined Handbooks Education Center Training Modules Career Degree List Articulation Agreements Zip File Submission of Student Agreements  Enhanced website   Quarterly communications with SOC DNS members  User feedback survey on the website

Future Plans New Network development aligned with emerging career fields Renewable Energy – 108% growth Forensics – 27% growth Biomedical Engineering – 23% growth Comprehensive Membership Review   Member web-based log-in to update meta information Virtual SOC Informational briefings, webinars 

Moderator – Kiwanis Short, Higher Education Programs Panel Discussion Moderator – Kiwanis Short, Higher Education Programs Panelists Joycelyn Groot, Executive Dean, Military Education, Corporate Training & Business Development Coastline Community College Ellen Coleman, Associate Director, Military and Veteran Education, Thomas Edison State University Catherine Smith, Associate Director at University of Maryland University College ALL

Contact Us Servicemembers Opportunity Colleges Phone: (800) 368-5622 1307 New York Avenue, NW Fifth Floor Washington, DC 20005-4701 Phone: (800) 368-5622 (202) 667-0079 Fax: (202) 667-0622 E-mail: socmail@aascu.org Web site: http://www.soc.aascu.org/ Dispatch e-mail collection