What can community colleges
do for your students?
2015 Annual MeCA Conference
Presenter:
Amanda Card, Assistant Director of Admissions
Southern Maine Community College, South Portland, Maine
Community Colleges:
Overview
The largest higher education segment in US
 Total number of community colleges: 1,132



Total student enrollment as of Fall 2012: 12.8 million
Overall enrollment status:
 Part-time = 59%
 Full-time
= 41%
 45% of all undergrads in the US are enrolled at a
community college
 Average annual tuition and fees (2013-14): $3,260
“2014 Fact Sheet.” American Association of Community Colleges (AACC)
Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy Brief 2012-03PBL).
Community College Student
Demographics

Women: 57% and Men: 43%

Average age: 28

First generation: 36%

Single parent: 17%

Non-US Citizen: 7%

Veterans: 4%

Students with disabilities: 12%

10% of students beginning at community college in 2003–04 who took
admissions tests earned scores between 1140 and 1600 (1600 was the
highest score)

Ethnicity Breakdown:
White: 51%
Hispanic: 19%
Black: 14%
Asian/Pacific
Islander: 6%
Native
American: 1%
2 or more
races: 2%
Other/Unkno
wn: 5%
Nonresident
Alien: 1%
IPEDS Fall 2012 Enrollment Survey and National Postsecondary Student Aid Study 2011-12
Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy Brief 2012-03PBL).
Trends in Student Enrollment
at Community Colleges

Increase in high income family student enrollment: 12%
in 2009-10
22% in 2010-11

Increase in middle income family student enrollment:
24% in 2009-2010
29% in 2010-11

Overall community college enrollment decline: 2.7%
 Lower
than the previous year
 Over
age 24 decline was 6% (accounted for most of
the decline)
 Ages
24 and younger declined by 0.5%
National Student Clearing House 2014
Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy Brief 2012-03PBL).
Community Colleges:
A Growing Trend
Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy Brief 2012-03PBL).
Maine Community College
Facts

7 total colleges state wide enrolling over 18,000 students

Roughly 300 degree and certificate options are available

All colleges and their 6 off-campus learning centers are located
within 25 miles of 92% of Maine’s population

Breakdown of enrollment by college

Central Maine Community College: 3,108

Eastern Maine Community College: 2,558

Kennebec Valley Community College: 2,263

Northern Maine Community College: 1,086

Southern Maine Community College : 7,157

Washington County Community College: 443

York County Community College: 1,583
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015. <http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Maine community colleges offer
four year college opportunities

Student housing is offered at 5 of the 7
community colleges (KVCC and YCCC
are non-residential)

Athletics is offered at 4 of the 7
community colleges in the USCAA
Division and YSCC

Study abroad opportunities are
available (Ireland, Canada) as well as
international short term visits
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April
2015. <http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
College is affordable at a
Maine community college!
2014-15 Charges
Maine Residents
Tuition (full-time)
$2,700
Credit Hour
$90
Room & Board
$6,500 - $8,500
Average Fees
$600 - $1,000
 Financial Aid is available to students who complete the
FAFSA
 Currently 82% of full-time students receive financial aid
in the form of Pell grants, scholarships, veterans’
benefits and other types of aid
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Transfer: A Goal of Community
College Students

A majority of students (80%) plan to
transfer and earn a bachelor’s degree

Underrepresented groups show strongest
desire to earn a bachelor’s degree:
greater than 80% for Latino, AfricanAmerican and low-income students

Only 25% of students actually transfer to a
four-year institution
Handel, Stephen J. “Community College Students Earning the Baccalaureate Degree: The Good News Could Be Better.”
Successful Transfer Student Facts
Enrolling at a community college increases a
student’s opportunity to enroll at a selective
institution after completing their studies versus
enrolling directly after high school completion
 Studies show that 45% of all students earning
bachelor’s degree previously attended a two-year
school
 The students who are most successful in earning
a four year degree exhibit the following
behaviors:
 Transfer to a public four-year school (most do)
 Immediately transfer (most do)
 Complete an associates degree (most don’t)

Shapiro, Doug T. “College Completion Rates: Student Pathways, Outcomes and Institutional Measures.”
Earning a bachelor’s degree:
Two separate paths, same result

Researchers argue that both two-year and
four-year institutions are equally
equipped at preparing students to earn a
bachelor’s degree

Students who transfer from a two-year
institution have comparable degree
completion rates as those students who
started at a four-year institution

Students who transfer are as likely to
earn a bachelor’s degree as those
students who started at a four-year
institution
Handel, Stephen J. “Community College Students Earning the Baccalaureate Degree: The Good News Could Be Better.”
National Student Clearing House Research Center
National Student Clearing House Research Center
National Student Clearing House Research Center
The reality of the transfer process

1 in 4 community college students successfully transfer
to a four-year institution

Studies show that 40% of students who do transfer lose
more than 10% of their credits in the transfer process

About 14% of community college students essentially
began anew after transferring: their new institution
accepted fewer than 10% of their community college
credits

Only 58% of community college transfers were able to
bring over 90% or more of their college credits to the
four year institution.

The remaining 28% of transfers lost between 10% and
89% of their credits.
Monaghan, David B. and Paul Attewell. “The Community College Route to the Bachelor’s Degree.”
Common theme: Loss of credits

Research has shown that 82% of transfer
students earned a bachelor’s degree in the
period observed when a 4-year receiving
institution accepted all of a community
college student’s credits, and 42% earned that
degree when the institution accepted only
some of their credits

Most common reasons credits are not
transferred for community college students:

The need for academic programs to offer
courses that make their program unique

Amount of time since credit was earned

Alignment between credits and courses of
study
Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy Brief 2012-03PBL).
What Works in Maine?

Most community colleges sign articulation
agreements with four year schools. These
agreements do not work unless there is
buy in from the four year schools.

The Maine Community College System
participates in the Exploring Transfer
program at Vassar College. This is an
intensive 5 week summer program which
is fully paid for by scholarship funds for
qualified students. This is ideal for
students interested in transferring to
competitive four year institutions.
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Examples of successful transfer
agreements between two and four year
institutions in Maine

SMCC recently signed 16 new transfer articulation
agreements with the University of New England.
All agreements with SMCC are listed by institution
and program on the school website for student
access at anytime.

Maine Maritime Academy Prep is an agreement
between Maine Maritime Academy and the Maine
Community College System. This allows students
to complete coursework at the community college
level to better prepare them for enrollment at
Maine Maritime upon completion.
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Dual Enrollment: Helping high
school students get a head start

There are currently 2,700 Maine high school students
enrolled in courses within the Maine Community College
System

On Course for College is a program sponsored by the
Maine Community College System that allows qualified
high school students (typically a B or higher GPA) to
enroll in college courses at little or no cost

Courses completed at the community college are
eligible to transfer to other institutions

Each college has their own dual enrollment coordinator
who works with the student, high school and college to
enroll the student in a college course each semester
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Early College for ME

Provides support and scholarship opportunities to high
school students starting in their sophomore and junior
years in high school

Assistance is given through the college application
process with an advisor who continues to support them
as they are enrolled students in the community college
of their choice

This program is currently available at 74 high schools

Qualified students are eligible to enroll in a college
course during their senior year for free

Scholarships totaling up to $2,000 over 2 years are
available to qualified students

Between Fall 2003 and Fall 2014, 2,347 ECforME
students received scholarships and enrolled in
community college
“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>
Even celebrities go to
community college!

Tom Hanks reflected on his experience as a community
college student recently in an op-ed piece for the New
York Times. Please reference and share this great piece
with anyone who may be interested!
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/14/opinion/tom-hankson-his-two-years-at-chabot-college.html?_r=0
Sources

“2014 Fact Sheet.” American Association of Community Colleges (AACC), 2014. Web. 2 November
2014. <http://www.aacc.nche.edu/AboutCC/Pages/fastfactsfactsheet.aspx>

Handel, Stephen J. “Community College Students Earning the Baccalaureate Degree: The Good
News Could Be Better.” College and University 89.2 (Winter 2013): 22-30. Print.

“Maine Community College System.” Maine Community College System, 2015. Web. 1 April 2015.
<http://www.mccs.me.edu/>

Monaghan, David B. and Paul Attewell. “The Community College Route to the Bachelor’s Degree.”
Educational Evaluation and Policy Analysis, 2014. Web. 2 November 2014.
<http://epa.sagepub.com/content/early/2014/02/28/0162373714521865>

Mullin, Christopher M. “Transfer: An indispensable part of the community college mission” (Policy
Brief 2012-03PBL). American Association of Community Colleges, 2012. Web. 2 November 2014.
<http://www.aacc.nche.edu/Publications/Briefs/Documents/AACC_Transfer_to_LUMINA.pdf>

Shapiro, Doug T. “College Completion Rates: Student Pathways, Outcomes and Institutional
Measures.” American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers Webinar, June 18,
2014.

Shapiro, Doug and Afet Dundar, et al. “Baccalaureate Attainment: A National View of the
Postsecondary Outcomes of Students Who Transferred from Two-Year to Four-Year Institutions.”
National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, 2013. Web. 2 November 2014.
<http://nscresearchcenter.org/category/reports/signature-report/>

“Table 140626.” National Center for Education Statistics, 2014. Web. 2 November 2014.
<http://nces.ed.gov/datalab/tableslibrary/viewtable.aspx?tableid=9514>
Contact Information
Amanda Card, Assistant Director of Admissions
acard@smccme.edu
Southern Maine Community College, South Portland, Maine