Reimagining Transfer for Student Success

Over the past decade, college students have become more mobile, moving in and out as well as through multiple colleges and universities and other learning environments, such as service in the military or other employment opportunities, as they navigate their path to a degree. As students increasingly rely on these nonlinear paths, tracking and validating learning that occurred elsewhere—and when appropriate, awarding credit for it—has become a stumbling block for many institutions in their efforts to serve students.

Research suggests that transfer student equity gaps have failed to budge over time, raising questions about the effectiveness of existing transfer policies and practices. Inefficient transfer of credit policies and practices only exacerbate inequities that already exist and add to the challenges facing students resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic.

By reimagining transfer to work better for students, higher education leaders can help remove barriers to students' success and reaffirm higher education's value as an engine of social mobility and justice.

Below, we provide recommendations and resources for higher education leaders looking to build campus environments that are supportive to the increasing number of students taking nonlinear paths through higher education and to ensure their success.

The Task Force

The National Task Force on the Transfer and Award of Credit was convened by the American Council on Education (ACE) in March 2020 with the aim of improving transfer and award of credit practices to spur student success and reduce the cost and time to complete a degree. Composed of more than two dozen college and university presidents and chancellors from institutions nationwide—two- and four-year, public and private—the Task Force spent the past year assessing critical topics related to transfer and award of credit. Our work was bolstered by ex-officio Task Force members representing several higher education associations, regional accreditors, and experts and practitioners involved with transfer credit at their institutions.

Task Force Report

The final report of the Task Force, Reimagining Transfer for Student Success, includes a call to action from college and university presidents and chancellors to their peers to improve transfer of credit policies and practices to better serve students by decreasing the cost and time to a degree. It provides six recommendations, highlighting best practices from a diverse set of campuses for each.

Effective Practices

The Task Force report outlined six effective practices that support students who pursue a postsecondary degree while transferring across institutions, systems, regions, and states. ACE's Research division has compiled a searchable list of examples of these effective practices at work. The examples included highlight relevant research and approaches that demonstrate how institutions have adapted effective practices to increase the success of their transfer students. To explore the list of practices and institutions using them, visit the Effective Practices That Support Transfer Students page.

Task Force Members

Task Force Leadership

Anne Holton

Professor, Schar School of Public Policy and College of Education and Human Development, George Mason University

Anne Holton

Professor, Schar School of Public Policy and College of Education and Human Development, George Mason University

Ted Mitchell

President

Former college president and top federal policymaker Ted Mitchell became president of the American Council on Education (ACE) on September 1, 2017. Mitchell brings a wide array of experience and accomplishments from across the higher ...

Ted Mitchell

President

Timothy P. White

Chancellor Emeritus, California State University; Professor, California State University, Long Beach

Timothy P. White

Chancellor Emeritus, California State University; Professor, California State University, Long Beach

Additional Members

Task Force Members

David W. Andrews, President, National University (CA)

James P. Clements, President, Clemson University (SC)

Michael M. Crow, President, Arizona State University

Waded Cruzado, President, Montana State University

Douglas J. Fiore, President, Mercy College of Health Sciences (IA)

Dianne F. Harrison, President Emerita, California State University, Northridge

Tracy L. Hartzler, President, Central New Mexico Community College

Chris Howard, President, Robert Morris University (PA)

Bonita Jacobs, President, University of North Georgia

Anne M. Kress, President, Northern Virginia Community College

Paul J. LeBlanc, President, Southern New Hampshire University

Elaine P. Maimon, President (2007–2020), Governors State University (IL)

Jim Malatras, Chancellor, The State University of New York (SUNY)

Michelle Marks, Chancellor, University of Colorado Denver

Joe May, Chancellor, Dallas College

James B. Milliken, Chancellor, University of Texas System

Judy C. Miner, Chancellor, Foothill-De Anza Community College District (CA)

Javier Miyares, President Emeritus, University of Maryland Global Campus

Edward Montgomery, President, Western Michigan University

Scott Pulsipher, President, Western Governors University (UT)

Félix V. Matos Rodríguez, Chancellor, The City University of New York (CUNY)

Mark B. Rosenberg, President, Florida International University

David Schejbal, President, Excelsior College (NY)

Richard Senese, President, Capella University (MN)

Sanford C. Shugart, President, Valencia College (FL)

Peggy Valentine, Interim Chancellor (2019–2021), Fayetteville State University (NC)

Lori Varlotta, President, California Lutheran University

Task Force Ex-Officio Members

Barbara Brittingham, President Emerita, New England Commission of Higher Education

Justin Draeger, President and Chief Executive Officer, National Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators

Carolyn Gentle-Genitty, Assistant Vice President for University Academic Policy, Indiana University

Troy Johnson, Vice President of Enrollment Management, University of Texas at Arlington

Kevin Kruger, President, NASPA – Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education

Rebecca Martin, Executive Director, National Association of System Heads

Michael Reilly, Executive Director, American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO)

Lenore Rodicio, Senior Fellow, Aspen Institute College Excellence Program, and Executive Vice President and Provost (2016–2020), Miami Dade College (FL)

Lori Williams, President and Chief Executive Officer, NC-SARA

2021 Joint Statement

The Joint Statement on the Transfer and Award of Credit has served for more than 20 years as the principal statement of the higher education community for what constitutes sound policies and practices regarding the award of credit for prior learning acquired at another institution or in an extra-institutional context. Originally released in 2001, the Joint Statement was developed by the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO), the American Council on Education (ACE), and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA).

Last updated in 2017, the 2021 edition sets forth the fundamental tenets underlying the decision of how and when to award credit for learning acquired elsewhere. In addition to outlining these core tenets, which remain central and unchanged from prior versions, the Joint Statement has been updated to better align with and reflect the significant changes occurring in the field, the impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on accelerating these changes, and the increasing number of students relying on non-linear pathways to and through higher education. In an effort to increase its usefulness, the Joint Statement now organizes its guidance around seven “key considerations” to help practitioners evaluate their own campus policies and practices and ensure credit award policies are supportive of the increasing number of students taking non-linear paths to and through higher education.