The Atlantic: A new study “finds that graduation rates of community-college transfers meet or exceed those of students who enroll at selective institutions as first-time freshman. Community-college transfers also graduate at higher rates than students who transfer from other four-year colleges … For the students who do ultimately transfer to selective colleges, it’s not that there are just a few shining stars skewing the data … The greatness is everywhere. ‘Fully 84 percent of the nation’s two-year institutions transferred at least one student to a selective four-year institution in fall 2016,’ the report says.”
“These days, the typical (community college) student is likely older, or lives off campus, or has a full-time job, or is going to school part-time, or has a child, or has some combination of any of those traits. And more often, students are starting their higher education at community colleges. In fact, more than 40 percent of all U.S. undergraduates attend community colleges.”
“Foundations such as Jack Kent Cooke have been working with colleges to help them enroll and fund transfer students, and organizations such as the American Talent Initiative have been pushing to get more community-college students into these schools. Even still, the mighty few who have large endowments, a working business model, and few empty seats may not feel compelled to enroll more transfer students. Still, this report shows that if admissions officers will accept them, community-college students are prepared to succeed at any college—even the most selective.”
