UI The Daily Iowan, IA
07-12-07
Other colleges gain popularity
Brian Stewart - The Daily Iowan
With orientation season well underway across the country, many students are
taking campus tours and registering for classes at colleges. That is, community
colleges - an increasingly popular option for recent high-school grads.
Community colleges enroll 46 percent of all undergraduate students nationwide,
according to the American Association of Community Colleges. Students are
choosing junior colleges over four-year institutions for several reasons, said
Steve Carpenter, the director of public-information services for Kirkwood
Community College in Cedar Rapids.
"It's convenient - they can stay close to home and transfer to college life easier,"
he said. "For some, it's financial, and for some, there is a specific program that
will help them in the future."
But for many students, attending a junior college doesn't mean that time at a
four-year institution isn't in their future, Carpenter said. Many colleges, including
Kirkwood, even offer "transfer degrees" that are based on general education
requirements, allowing students to seamlessly enter a four-year university as a
junior.
A Kirkwood study found that from 1996 to 2006, Kirkwood students have
transferred to four-year colleges in all 50 states and across the globe, Carpenter
said. Of the 21,000 total transfer students from Kirkwood during that time, 16,000
transferred to Iowa colleges, with an "overwhelming number" moving to the UI,
he said.
The UI recently introduced its 2 Plus 2 Plan - an agreement with Kirkwood and
other community colleges that provides UI-recommended classes.
"[The plan] is for students who know they want to end up here, but for whatever
reason prefer to attend a community college first," said Michael Barron, the
director of UI Admissions.
Tristan Meade, a May graduate of West High, plans to attend Kirkwood because
of its proximity to her family.
"People think, 'Oh, it's Kirkwood, it's where dumb people go,' " she said. "But it's
a good place to start off if you're not comfortable with going to a big school like
[the UI]. You can get used to college before transferring somewhere."
The Liaison Advisory Committee on Transfer Students is made up of a
representative from each regent university - the UI, Iowa State University, and
University of Northern Iowa - and three members from community colleges in
Iowa. The group has helped establish guidelines on transferring credits or
degrees from junior colleges to regents' universities.
"Community colleges are a strong choice in this area, especially for students who
want to take that two-year degree and go to a four-year institution," Carpenter
said.
Barron said the UI will continue to work with colleges across the state to make
the transfer process from a two- year to four-year college as simple and effective
as possible.
"We have every reason to believe that students who complete an associate
degree and then transfer [to the UI] will perform at the same level as students
who started here," he said.
E-mail DI reporter Brian Stewart at:
brian-stewart@uiowa.edu