OpInform 2017 Access, Opportunity and Success: Best Practices for SUNY Pathways and Degree Completion

Access, Opportunity and Success During this session, our focus will be to discuss options for your bachelor’s degree seeking students who have not been accepted to their first choice SUNY campus or to a SUNY campus that offers four- year degrees. Within the SUNY System, a number of options are available to best assist for post-secondary planning. Topics will include: joint admissions, SUNY Seamless Transfer, deferred enrollment, and best practices for successful transfer advisement. OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Why are we here? Provide guidance to our colleagues who need to encourage students to seek alternate starting points for the college experience. AKA I didn't get into my first choice. Help! Encourage open dialogue to promote the outstanding transfer opportunities available within The State University of New York. Nearly 55% of SUNY’s enrolled undergraduate students are attending community colleges.* (Does not include Colleges of Technology two- year enrollment!) * Retrieved from SUNY BI, August 2017 OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Points of Discussion Associate Degree Breakdowns SUNY Seamless Transfer and Pathways Articulation Agreements vs. Transfer Agreements Joint Admissions 2+2 (or more) Agreements Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) and EOP Transfer Deferred Enrollments (i.e. Spring Entry) Reverse Transfer OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Associate Degree Breakdowns A.S. – Associate in Science A.A. – Associate in Arts (Transfer-based Associate Degrees) Benefits Flexibility Transfer friendly Include general education courses Potential limitations Less focus on courses within major Higher liberal arts core A.A.S. – Associate in Applied Science A.O.S. – Associate in Occupational Studies (Profession-based Associate Degrees) Benefits Work-ready programs Highly specialized Potential limitations Transferability – include limited general education courses OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success SUNY Seamless Transfer and Pathways The goal of seamless transfer is to enable students to complete their intended program of study on time, without unnecessary cost and/or duplication of effort. OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success SUNY Seamless Transfer and Pathways Transfer guarantees for SUNY students completing an A.A. or A.S. degree: Seven free applications Guaranteed acceptance to a SUNY four-year college Guaranteed junior standing in a parallel program Acceptance of core courses in a SUNY Transfer Path Satisfaction of completed General Education requirements OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success SUNY Seamless Transfer and Pathways Other provisions Credit caps: students need to satisfy no more than 64 credits to obtain an associate degree and 126 credits to obtain a bachelor’s degree Standardized appeal process Potential limitations Transfer paths have not been finalized for all majors Placement a four-year college under SUNY’s transfer guarantee is based on student’s likelihood to succeed, and not student preference

Access, Opportunity and Success Articulation Agreements The intent of an articulation agreement is to facilitate transfer between a specific major at a community college and a specific major at a four-year college. The agreement allows a community college student to complete an A.A. or A.S. degree and then transfer to the four-year institution with full junior status. The process is seamless.

Access, Opportunity and Success Transfer Agreements The intent of a transfer agreement is to facilitate transfer between one community college and a specific 4-year college/university. Examples are: Binghamton Advantage Program between Binghamton University and SUNY Broome Start Now program between SUNY Oswego and Jefferson Community College Partnership between SUNY Oneonta and Nassau Community College

Access, Opportunity and Success Articulation Agreements vs. Transfer Agreements Articulation Agreements: Program-based between campuses Transfer Agreements: Campus-based Benefits Both are a guarantee of acceptance into a 4-year college as long as the student maintains a certain GPA within a prescribed set of courses at (typically) a community college Potential limitations for Transfer Agreements Course transferability Additional time to degree completion OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Joint Admissions Joint Admissions is a cooperative program between two-year and four-year SUNY colleges. The program guarantees junior- level admission (subject to certain requirements) in a parallel program at a four-year college after completing an associate degree program at the two-year college. OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Joint Admissions Benefits Guaranteed acceptance into the designated four-year campus with junior status (subject to requirements) General core curriculum will be completed at the community college Potential opportunities to watch athletic, concerts and other student events at the four-year campus while at the two-year campus Streamlined communication plan and advising from the four-year campus Possibility for additional scholarships to be awarded Potential limitations Students must meet the admission requirements at both campuses to enroll in the program Not all SUNY campuses offer joint admissions programs OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success 2+2 (or more) Agreements Agreements between two regionally accredited two-year and four-year institutions that allows for a seamless transfer, spending two years at each institution. Students will likely have to maintain a specific GPA and complete certain prerequisite coursework and number of credits before moving on to the four-year college. Examples Tompkins Cortland A.A.S. to SUNY Upstate B.S. in Nursing Adirondack A.S. Criminal Justice to Canton B.T. in Homeland Security OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success 2+2 (or more) Agreements Benefits Students may pay tuition at the local community college rate for two years, but still be on a four-year plan Potential Limitations Student must complete a predetermined set of courses (and maintain a certain GPA) at the first college to be granted acceptance to the four-year college Student may change his/her mind about attending the second college OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Educational Opportunity Program (EOP) Benefits Intensive advisement/mentoring Available at 48 campuses Modest financial support Potential limitations Due to available funding, space varies by campus Academic/financial guidelines EOP admission starts first semester only OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success EOP Transfer Process Benefits “Once EOP, always EOP” Eligible from other access programs: SEEK/College Discovery – CUNY HEOP – Private college Additional campus-based opportunity programs: Bridges (Cobleskill); AOP (Alfred State) Potential limitations Outgoing GPA can limit availability OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Deferred Enrollment Deferred enrollment may be offered to a select group of exceptional first-year applicants whom colleges were unable to admit for the fall semester due to space constraints. Some students have an opportunity to take a “Gap Year.” Other students are offered spring semester start. *Only a few SUNY campuses offer deferred enrollment, be sure to do your research before taking this path. OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Deferred Enrollment Benefits Options for those seeking military service or cultural experiences For students offered spring admission, four-year colleges may work with the student’s local community college to help students begin coursework Special advisement/informational sessions may be conducted by the four-year colleges for students at the local community college Potential Limitations Program availability Tech-based programs Intro courses OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Reverse Transfer Reverse transfer is a program for students who have already transferred to a SUNY four-year institution without having earned an associate degree at a SUNY community college. Reverse transfer allows students to transfer the credits they have earned at the SUNY four-year institution back to the SUNY community college to meet the requirements for an associate degree. OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Reverse Transfer Benefits Allows students to progress academically Financial savings Re-establish academic standing Potential limitations Transferability of credits if student does not continue in a parallel program OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Scenario 1 A student walks into your office carrying rejection letters from Binghamton, Geneseo, Albany and Cortland. What do you do now? OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Scenario 2 A student wants to go to the University at Buffalo for pharmacy but his or her transcript says otherwise. What can the student do? OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Scenario 3 A student walks into your office asking about “Free College” through the Excelsior Scholarship… OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Scenario 3 (for real) A student started at Jamestown Community College, stayed for two years, then transferred to Fredonia without earning her A.S. degree. The student left Fredonia after a year for financial reasons. She has come back to see you. What should the student do next? OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Questions for Open Discussion Within your professional positions, what are your best practices to assist students in following a “Pathway” to four- year degree completion? From this dialogue, what’s missing in these conversations between school/college/CBO counselors and college admission professionals that can improve this process? Additional questions for discussion? OpInform 2017

Access, Opportunity and Success Thank You! OpInform 2017