Transcript Slide 1

Serving Your Transfers
Outside of a Specialized
Orientation
Ashlea Coulter,
Coordinator
Melissa McGuire,
Assistance Vice President
of Student Affairs
Orientation and Transition Programs
University of North Texas
UNT AT A GLANCE
• Leading public research institution in the
Dallas/Fort Worth area
• Emerging National Research University in TX
• Four Bold Goals
– Goal 1: Provide the best undergraduate
education experience in Texas.
• Strong support systems to ensure that more students
stay in school, engage in service and campus life, and
graduate on time
UNT Transfer Students
3rd largest transfer population in Texas
Tot. Enroll.
New
Transfers
Percent
Growth
Retention
Rate
2012
35,836
3,827
+4.8%
N/A
2011
35,754
3,650
-5.9%
74.53%
2010
36,118
3,879
75.32%
Who we’re losing:
• Black Males (61.5%) and Black Females (67.97%)
• Those who transfer with 31-45 hours (71.1%)
• Those who come from a 4-year institution
(74.15%)
• Those who wait until summer to apply
RETENTION GOALS
Current
74.53%
2016
78%
2019
80%
2022
82%
USING PROGRAMMING TO IMPACT
RETENTION
• Studies on transfer students found that variables
associated with social and academic integration played a
role in the persistence of transfer students at four-year
colleges and universities (Pascarella, Smart, and Ethington 1986)
• To encourage a higher completion rates among transfer
students, UNT has implemented concentrated programming
specifically for transfer students since Fall 2009 with our
Transfer Center
THE TRANSFER STUDENT EXPERIENCE
• Negative feelings associated with not being a “native
student”
• Welcomed the label of transfer student when an incentive
was involved
• Main struggles include building social connections,
navigating campus, and understanding financial aid
MEETING THEM WHERE
THEY ARE
• Transfer Orientation
• Commuter Parking Lots
• Academic Buildings
• University Union
IMPROVING THE TRANSFER EXPERIENCE
• Transfer Talkbacks
o Round table
o Online
o Incentive
o Questions catered
toward 2 and 4 year
students
TIE INTO STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS
• Existing Events on Campus
• Tau Sigma National Honor Society
• Student Government Association
• Commuter Student Boards
EMBRACING THEIR NEW IDENTITY
• The Eagle Has Landed
o Transfer T-shirt Trade
• Homecoming Participation
• “Teams” for school traditions
o Dance Marathon
o Alternative Spring Break
o Relay for Life
• Tailgate and Cheer Sections at
Sporting Events
TRANSFER REAL COMMUNITY
• Upperclassmen Residence Hall
• RA who was a transfer student
• 3.05 GPA for Transfer REAL
Community participants
o 2.82 average GPA for larger REAL
Community population
RECRUITING
• Collaborate with Admissions recruiters
• Imperative for students to get an honest perspective from a
current student
• Increase participation and visibility on campuses where
your large transfer numbers come from
• Preview Days
SOCIAL EVENTS
• Kickoff
• Socials
• Recreation Nights
• Winter Welcome
• Appreciation Days
ACADEMIC RESOURCES
•
Transfer Tips
•
Get The Scoop On….
•
Finals/Midterms Study Sessions
•
Career focused events
MENTORING
• Transfer Ambassadors
• Paired with a upperclassmen student
• “Wingman”
OUR EVENT ATTENDEES
•
•
•
Gender: Twice as many females than males
Classification: Largest group is Juniors followed by
Sophomores
Age Range: 20-23 is median age of attendees
•
Satisfaction surveys: No
student in Fall 2012 has
marked below a neutral
UPCOMING INITIATIVES
•Transfer-Specific
o Requiring an extended orientation program for all
new transfers (First Flight)
o Mandatory advising for all new transfers in first year
•All Students
o Supplemental Instructor and Peer Mentor in all
course sections with a DFWI rate above 35%
DISCUSSION
• What are successful
programs/practices on your campus to
engage transfers in the college
experience?
• Do you consider the difference in needs
of 2-year versus 4-year institution
transfers when designing programs?
THANK YOU!
Ashlea Coulter
Coordinator, Transfer Center
[email protected]
Melissa McGuire,
Assistant Vice President of Student Affairs
[email protected]
Orientation and Transition Programs,
University of North Texas