Dive Brief:
- The National Student Clearinghouse has received a grant to develop a free national exchange for “reverse transfer” data on students, which will allow students who transferred to four-year schools to receive associate degrees.
- A reverse transfer of credits happens when the four-year school that accepted the transferred student sends credits back to the two-year college that the student attended, allowing him or her to receive an associate degree.
- Research shows that transferred students who are awarded associate degrees are more likely to complete their four-year degree program, the clearinghouse reported.
Dive Insight:
The Lumina Foundation is providing the grant money for the project, which aims to help up to 2 million students get an associate degree. According to a Lumina study, 78% of students who transfer from a community college to a four-year school do so without a degree. Texas, Missouri, Tennessee, and Ohio are also developing reverse credit transfer programs. Other benefits of these programs include community colleges getting more recognition and states being able to boast of more degrees, which helps their marketing efforts to attract new business.