East Georgia State College-[node:field-date:custom:Y]--Automatic degree audits for students with 60+ credits, -Reverse Transfer Promotion activities

Goal 5

Award degrees to students who may have already met requirements for associate degrees via courses taken at one or more institutions.

Strategy 5.4 Implementation

EGSC audits all students with at least 45 or more credit hours each fall semester.

5.4 Summary of Activities

EGSC annually conducts degree audits and contacts students who can complete their associate degree within one term.  In addition, students who plan to transfer are informed about reverse transfer.  This is facilitated within the Records Office, through the Academic Advising Centers, and through the faculty advisors.

East Georgia State College has made preliminary contact with GaSoU and AU to develop a formal agreement to simplify the reverse transfer process.  EGSC begins tracking students for reverse transfer when they get close to transfer to the university.  The Advising Center develops a graduation plan which focuses on reverse transfer and begins working with the student.  Both GaSoU and AU do special transfer information sessions for EGSC students prior to transfer during their last term as EGSC students.  Students will be asked to commit to doing reverse transfer and will be tracked by EGSC advising personnel into the university if they agree to commit.  The university will provide access to information about the student to EGSC during the tracking.  In addition, university students who have not been successful at the university will be informed of the option to transfer to East Georgia to finish an associate degree.  An MOU has been developed between EGSC and AU to formalize the process.  Negotiations are currently in progress to develop a similar MOU with GaSoU.

5.4 Interim Measures of Progress

According to USG Summary data for EGSC, the number of students reaching credit hour benchmarks increased from FY 2008 to FY 2013:

• 15 hour benchmark from 774 (FY 2008) to 1,126 (FY 2013)
• 30 hour benchmark from 579 (FY 2008) to 884 (FY 2013)
• 60 hour benchmark from 132 (FY 2008) to 289 (FY 2013)

In Fall 2014, the number of students reaching credit hour benchmarks

• 15 hour benchmark – 876 students
• 30 hour benchmark – 1,002 students
• 60 hour benchmark – 389 students

79 of the students reaching the 60 hour benchmark graduated at the end of Fall 2014 and 111 of the students graduated in Spring 2015. 

Fifteen former EGSC students have been successfully reverse transferred back to receive their associate degrees from EGSC between Fall Semester 2012 and Summer Semester 2014 (Academic Year 12-13 and Academic Year 13-14).  This is 3.9% of our graduates during those terms.  While this percentage is small, prior to those terms it was less than 2% during an academic year. 

Reverse transfer is defined by EGSC as a student voluntarily transferring classes back from a receiving institution and completing their degree without returning to EGSC.  The literature suggests that the definition of reverse transfer could also include those students who transfer hours from another institution and finish their associate degree before transferring again.  A study of the Fall 2014 graduates found two graduates who fit into our traditional definition of reverse transfer, sixteen graduates who transferred courses to EGSC and finished their associate degree, and four graduates who transferred from EGSC after completing 30 hours and returned to EGSC bringing with them some hours they could use to finish their associate degree.  All of the twenty graduates who did not fit into our traditional definition of reverse transfer were having difficulties being successful at their previous institution and returned to EGSC to complete their associate degree.     

On July 15, 2014 EGSC was chosen to partner with GaSoU and AU for a USG pilot program in reverse transfer called ADD (Associate Degree you Deserve).  A MOU was developed between EGSC and AU this past year.  A MOU with GaSoU is still in progress.   Funded by the Lumina Foundation, the initiative will begin this Fall 2015 term.

5.4 Measures of Success

The most important measure of success will be the number of graduates who complete their degrees.  Other indicators of success will be a reduction in the number of extra hours beyond 65 students complete before the awarding of their degree and the number of students who reverse transfer courses to complete a degree.