March 20, 2016
CWID Data Note 3: Does the Associate’s Degree Matter?
A fundamental question associated with reverse transfer policies relates to the value of the associate’s degree. In 2015 when the Credit When It’s Due initiative was underway, research on the impact of receiving an associate’s degree after transfer was limited. In Data Note 3, CWID researchers helped close that gap by exploring the influence of the associate’s degree prior to transfer on bachelor’s degree outcomes.
In this Data Note, researchers used the CWID Baseline Dataset to answer the following research questions:
- What is the difference in bachelor’s degree completion rates between students who transfer with an associate’s degree and without an associate’s degree?
- Controlling for pre-transfer factors, does completing an associate’s degree prior to transfer predict bachelor’s degree completion?
The results of the study show that after controlling for important demographic and academic characteristics, earning an associate’s degree prior to transfer matters but so does the type of associate’s degree. It is important to note that not all associate’s degrees are designed as transfer degrees. It is likely that the credits from an Associate of Arts (in HI & OH) or an Associate of Science (in OH) were more likely to be accepted for transfer by the receiving university, which explains part of the results. Similarly, it is likely that credits from the Associate of Science (in HI) and the Associate of Applied Science (in OH) were also less likely to be accepted for transfer by the receiving university. In the context of reverse transfer, this study provides evidence that reverse transfer programs and policies may benefit some students. That is, students who transfer without the associate’s degree may be at risk of not completing a bachelor’s degree, and providing transfer students the opportunity to earn an associate’s degree via reverse transfer may affect students’ bachelor’s degree outcomes.
Read the full study below.
Credit When It’s Due (CWID) is a multi-foundation funded, multi-state initiative designed to facilitate the implementation of reverse transfer policies and processes that benefit college students who have transferred from the community college to the bachelor’s level and have not secured an associate’s degree at the time of transfer. CCRI is funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to research this initiative. Learn more about the full initiative here.