ASU, Maricopa Community Colleges expand partnership

ASU and the Maricopa Community College District announced this week an expanded partnership to increase the number of students who complete a community college degree and go on to graduate from ASU. The goal is to double the number of students transferring to ASU from the community colleges, and to increase their success at the university.

The agreement emphasizes academic preparation, increased student advising and financial support, and better sharing of data and information to make the transfer process smooth. Students will benefit from priority or guaranteed admission to ASU degree programs when a prescribed course sequence is followed.

This represents an expansion of the ASU/Maricopa Alliance, an agreement that was first entered into in July, 2005. As the two largest providers of higher education in the state, ASU and Maricopa are uniquely positioned to create a student-centered "culture of transfer" to increase the number of college degrees awarded in Arizona.

ASU and the MCCD have a strong history of developing collaborations and partnerships to support transfer student success. As the need for educated workers in the state increases, they are ramping up their efforts, with the following goals:

• Double the number of Maricopa students transferring to ASU over the next five years, from 4,300 in 2006-07;

• Double the percentage of Maricopa students transferring to ASU with an associate’s degree, from 30 percent in 2006-07;

• Increase the rate of Maricopa transfer students earning a bachelor’s degree;

• Ensure seamless transition of students between Maricopa and ASU;

• Expand opportunities for direct transfer to specified ASU degree programs.

A key component of the enhanced alliance is incentives for students who complete an associate’s degree or Arizona General Education Curriculum through an articulated degree-to-degree transfer program. The Maricopa to ASU Pathways Program (MAPP) will provide guaranteed admission into an ASU undergraduate program.  

First-time freshmen who successfully complete a MAPP and transfer to ASU within three years of entering the program will benefit from tuition incentives such as a cap on tuition increases during their enrollment at ASU.

Guidelines include encouraging Maricopa students to earn an associate’s degree before transferring, making students aware of financial aid opportunities and requirements, increasing ASU on-site student advising on MCCD campuses, increasing collection and sharing of data, and the development of an electronic transcript system.

"Linkages between the community college and the university are essential to the future of our educational enterprise in Arizona," says President Crow. "The Maricopa Community College District and ASU, through these efforts, have greatly enhanced our relationship and thus greatly improved our chances of success."

"Our colleges and ASU have a strong history of collaboration that will only be enhanced by strengthening the alliance," Chancellor Glasper says.

"We want to make sure that as many Maricopa County students as possible have the best opportunity to succeed first at a Maricopa Community College and then at the university."

The two institutions appointed a steering committee to implement the MAPP program by fall 2009, and to assess the progress of the alliance. ASU and MCCD will work together to identify and secure resources for the expanded partnership.