“Florida, for instance, has a very sophisticated system of numbering their courses, making sure that every state institution is working along the course numbering system. In this, we saw a tiny, tiny difference [in transfer rates],” Gross insists.
Gross asserts that the decision to attend a two-year college is often an economic one. Students enroll in community colleges, under the impression that they will save money and transfer their credits. State articulation agreements, prior to Gross’ research, were seemingly an added incentive for advancing one’s studies.
That, however, is being challenged.
“The most significant predictor of whether a student goes from a community college to a four-year college is aspiration — whether the student wants to transfer and whether they have the academic skills to do so.
Surprisingly, the study found small positive effects for transfer agreements concentrated amongst Hispanic students. According to the report, the odds of transferring are higher for Hispanics who live in a state with a transfer policy than for Hispanics who live in states without such policies. Such policies had no positive impact on first-generation and African-American students.
The reason, at this point, is inexplicable, says Gross. “It is a puzzling result.”
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