Goal 1: A Successful First Year

Whether Transfer Ticket students begin full time or part time at the community college, they will have a program of study that (1) directs them to complete college-level composition and mathematics within their first 30 credits of study; (2) provides them with the opportunity to explore introductory courses in their major; (3) identifies courses that simultaneously fulfill degree requirements AND allow students to explore other interests; and (4) sequences courses in such a way that, in many cases, students can change majors without accruing excess credit.  Students who complete the first 30 credits of a Transfer Ticket can be confident that they are on the path to completing the Associate’s AND Bachelor’s degree in a way that is both time and cost efficient.

Goal 2: Student Success

With Transfer Tickets, students are guaranteed a transfer program requiring 120 credits. Students who follow a Transfer Ticket program of study will not have excess credits caused by courses that transfer as electives rather than toward program or general education requirements. Moreover, because the Transfer Tickets are applicable to all four CSUs and Charter Oak, students can wait to choose their next campus until they are ready to transfer.  They can select a four-year program based on geographic proximity or academic interests rather than which program transfers the most credit.    Without the academic, financial, and emotional obstacles caused by inefficient and cumbersome credit transfer, students will be able to focus on their studies and complete their degrees. Because Transfer Tickets provide for students to complete both an Associate degree and a Bachelor’s degree, the two degrees will be reflected in the graduation rates for both the sending Community College and the receiving CSU or Charter Oak. 

Goal 3: Affordability and Sustainability

Students who complete a Bachelor’s degree in 120 credits pay less and require less state support.  Because Transfer Tickets assure students that they will arrive at the CSU or Charter Oak needing only another 60 credits, they might be less easily lured to private institutions, thereby helping the CSUs and Charter Oak to sustain their enrollments.

Goal 4: Equity

Transfer Tickets ensure that a student who decides to begin higher education at a Connecticut Community College has the same opportunity to graduate with a 120-credit Bachelor’s degree as a student who chooses to begin at a CSU.  In addition, because a Transfer Ticket Student’s tuition for the first 60 credits will be at the Community College’s lower rate, the total cost for a Bachelor’s degree will be around $12,500 less than the full four-year cost a CSU.  Without the guaranteed transfer of the Transfer Tickets, the money a student initially saves by attending a community college can be wiped out by the cost of additional courses.  Moreover, because a student will be able to complete a degree in 120 credits, the graduate will be able to enter the work force with degreed credentials sooner than the student who must complete additional required credits.