More than 80 percent of today’s high school graduates will choose to attend college within eight years of graduating from high school and nearly half of them will attend a technical or community college prior to transferring to a four-year institution (Rising by degrees, 2014). Some decide to attend a technical college because the tuition is less, while others make this decision due to flexible class scheduling options. For students who are unsure of their major, attending a technical college can be an affordable option that allows them to take a variety of courses (Kokemuller, 2013). However, the transition from a two-year to a four-year institution is not always smooth. Having worked for a short time as an academic adviser at both Midlands Technical College (MTC) and the University of South Carolina (USC), I have observed the glitches students can encounter in the transfer process. How can we, as academic advisers, create a smoother transition for students from a technical school to a four-year university? The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of a successful MTC–USC initiative for transfer students called Gamecock Gateway (GG) and to provide tips to assist in the smooth transition of students from two- to four-year institutions.
Gamecock Gateway Overview
Established in 2012, Gamecock Gateway is an invitation-only program that provides South Carolina residents who are first-time college students with access to a University of South Carolina degree (Gamecock Gateway, 2012). As a residential bridge program, Gamecock Gateway is a successful collaboration between the University of South Carolina and Midlands Technical College that enables students to complete one year of studies at MTC while living in a USC residence hall (Gamecock Gateway, 2012). Students meeting all program requirements during their two semesters at MTC are granted full admission into USC the following academic year. In summary, “Gamecock Gateway provides access to a University of South Carolina degree through highly collaborative, personalized academic support and purposeful community engagement that contributes toward student development and matriculation into the University of South Carolina” (Gamecock Gateway, 2012, ¶ 1).
Gamecock Gateway: Steps For Success
The GG coordinator is a University of South Carolina employee and works on the USC campus. Two other members of the leadership team are employed by Midlands Technical College and work at MTC’s Airport campus. One serves as a coordinator for GG, and the other is an adviser and retention advocate for the program. Each member of the leadership team plays an integral role in ensuring the success of the students enrolled in Gamecock Gateway.
Inter-Institutional Collaboration
The three program team members work together, across campuses, to ensure a successful transition for the GG students. MTC and USC have their own academic and transfer policies; thus, GG students benefit from having advisers located at both institutions. Not only are these advisers in direct contact with each other, but they also help students make connections to faculty and staff at both MTC and USC. For instance, while students are enrolled at MTC, the program hosts drop-in sessions from USC faculty members who may become their professors the next year (D. Etheridge, personal communication, September 25, 2013). Also, during advising, GG students are given contact information for USC staff in the various programs of study and are encouraged to meet with these staff members to discuss their intended majors (S. Vinson, personal communication, November 7, 2013).
Access to Resources
Gamecock Gateway students have the unique opportunity to benefit from key resources at both MTC and USC. At MTC, students have access to all campus resources, including the Academic Success Center, Counseling Center, and campus clubs and organizations. At USC, GG students have access to intramural sports, the fitness center, campus dining, the library, the student center, and more. Having early access to these facilities will smooth their transition once they become full-time USC students. There are, however, a few USC services that GG students are not able to access until they officially transfer to USC. For example, they are not eligible to join a fraternity or sorority, become the president of a club at USC, or receive student tickets for USC football, basketball, or baseball games.
Advising
Students participating in Gamecock Gateway are given special attention when it comes to advising. Program leaders work hard to ensure that each student’s MTC courses will transfer to USC. Before GG students receive advising, they are asked to take the ACT Engage Motivation Test. This test helps students discover their strengths, and when they come to an advising session knowing their strengths, they feel more confident and more willing to share their dreams (D. Etheridge, personal communication, September 25, 2013).
The GG staff work to ensure that students are aware of and meet the academic and transfer policies for both institutions. For instance, MTC requires students to take Compass Placement Tests, which evaluate students’ levels of performance in reading, English, and math. Students whose scores warrant placement in a developmental course must complete an extra course that does not transfer to USC and may delay their completion of the required 30 credit hours in a year. The GG staff helps students develop strategies for complying with the policy yet still earn the required 30 hours of transferable credits. For example, one GG coordinator (Drew Newton, personal communication, October 24, 2013) stated that the team often advises students to take fast-track courses—those that only last a half semester—and take advantage of exemption opportunities in the summer, passing an exit exam to bypass developmental courses.
The GG program has helpful policies in place to keep students on track. For example, GG students are not allowed to withdraw from classes without first meeting with a GG adviser. In addition, students whose grade-point averages are below 2.5 after the first semester are required to fulfill individualized requirements, such as meeting with a GG adviser and/or attending tutoring sessions, to help increase their GPAs in the spring (Gamecock Gateway, 2012). Furthermore, students have access to an up-to-date listing of the minimum GPA and pre-requisite course requirements for their intended USC majors (S. Vinson, personal communication, November 7, 2013).
Assessment
The GG leadership team has a comprehensive program assessment plan in place. The team carefully monitors students’ academic progress as well as their sense of belonging (D. Newton, personal communication, October 24, 2013). They use a multitude of assessment strategies, including focus groups, engaging in one-on-one meetings with students, using ACT Engage data, and by monitoring students’ progress in the freshman seminar course at MTC, in which students create an engagement plan describing the clubs and organizations they will join. Students are asked to reflect on this plan once a month. This allows students to evaluate their strengths and acknowledge the importance of getting involved on campus (D. Newton, personal communication, October 24, 2013).
Lessons Learned
Given the success of Gamecock Gateway, a number of best practices have emerged to assist students as they transition from two- to four-year institutions:
Help Students Anticipate Roadblocks
Students need to know upfront that their transition from a two-year school to a four-year institution is not going to be easy. Alerting students to the difficulties that lie ahead will better prepare them in the long run. According to one of the program coordinators, the advisers for Gamecock Gateway are straightforward and blunt about the reality of the difficulties the GG students will face when they transition to USC. They also remind students that making mistakes is part of the process and students can learn from those mistakes. The GG leadership team consistently reminds students they are available to help them deal with challenges that will likely arise. Although the GG leadership team is technically only responsible for helping students during their first year in the program, team members continue to make themselves available as resources and as a support system to GG students after they have successfully transferred to USC. GG students know their advisers are lifelong supporters of their dreams and ambitions.
Build Relationships with Students
Just as program leaders encourage GG students to self-explore by taking the ACT Engage Motivation Test, it is important that advisers build relationships with their advisees by asking open-ended questions during advising and help students discover their unique personal qualities. Engaging students in self-discovery early can help them reflect on who they are and what majors might be most congruent with their strengths and abilities.
Be Knowledgeable
The GG advisers are knowledgeable about the various courses and policies at both MTC and USC, and this is extremely beneficial to their students. Advisers at other two- and four-year institutions involved in collaborative transition programs can offer the same smooth process and assurances to student participants by becoming knowledgeable about the policies and course requirements at participating institutions.
Be Connected
Following Gamecock Gateway’s inter-institutional example, it appears that one of the best ways for two- and four-year advisers to be connected is to visit each other’s institutions and meet one-on-one with advisers in the most popular majors. Establishing and maintaining relationships with fellow advisers at other institutions will make it easier to directly refer students to the appropriate resource. Similarly, advisers should be aware of other campus resources that can effectively assist transfer students.
Conclusion
Although it is challenging for students to transition from a two-year to a four-year college, the Gamecock Gateway program is an example of a successful collaboration between Midlands Technical College and the University of South Carolina that facilitates the transition between institutions for its participants. This article addressed how the program helps students transfer from MTC to USC and provided specific suggestions for advisers interested in such programs to ensure the success of their students.