bridging the gap between community colleges and baccalaureate degrees in stem

Bridging the Gap Between Community Colleges and Baccalaureate Degrees in STEM

Tim Walston (Biology)

Barbara Kramer (Chemistry)David Garth (Mathematics)Jason Miller (Mathematics)


• Problem • Transfer students in STEM are rarely successful.

• Partnerships• Four schools working together to change this.

• Potential• Creating pathways for success for STEM-centric transfer students

Community colleges serve a large proportion of students

From 2004-2008:• 69-70% of high school graduates attended

college the next semester– 20-21% of graduates attended a public, 4-year

college in Missouri– 26-27% of graduates attended a public, 2-year

college in Missouri

MDHE “Imperatives for Change Baseline Report” (2009), www.dhe.mo.gov/ifc/

The proportion of students served by community colleges is growing

From 2007-2011:• Enrollment in all Missouri institutions has

increased by 15.6%– Public 4-year enrollment has increased by only 11%– Public 2-year enrollment has increased by 29%• One partner institution has seen a 45.5% increase

MDHE Statistical Summary Table 31 & 32 (2011), http://www.dhe.mo.gov/data/statsum/

Overall, transfer students are slightly less successful than native students

For full-time students, all disciplines:• Native six-year graduation rate is 56%• Post-transfer four-year graduation rate is 50%

(from public 2-year institution in MO)


Transfer students in STEM are much less successful than other transfer students

For full-time students from public 2-year institutions, all disciplines:• Post-transfer four-year graduation rate is 50%

For full-time students from public 2-year institutions, in STEM disciplines:• Post-transfer four-year graduation rate is 9.3%– Decrease of 1% between 2003-2007


Part-time transfer students in STEM are even less successful

For full-time students from public 2-year institutions, in STEM disciplines:• Post-transfer four-year graduation rate is 9.3%– Decrease of 1% between 2003-2007

• Part-time student four-year graduation rate is only 4.1% – 62 degrees awards to a cohort of 1,527 in 2007


More students require remedial courses

For first-time college students in 2007…• 30% needed remedial mathematics• 17% needed remedial English/writing• 10% needed remedial reading


Understanding of mathematics is a strong indicator of success in STEM fields

• Most STEM degrees require at least Calculus 1 and Basic Statistics

• Chemistry, Physics, Mathematics, Computer Science all require completion of Calculus 3

• Physics, Mathematics, and Computer Science require Advanced Statistics

• Science is becoming increasingly interdisciplinary and reliant on mathematical modeling

Mathematics preparation for 2-year colleges may be less than 4-year colleges

In Fall 2007, 30% of first-time college students needed remedial mathematics courses• 47% of students at public 2-year institutions• 12% of students at public 4-year institutions– Missouri S&T, Mizzou, MSU, Truman, UMKC, and

UMSL have 0% of students in remedial mathematics!!

– Inaccuracy in methodology?MDHE “Imperatives for Change Baseline Report” (2009), www.dhe.mo.gov/ifc/

Mathematics preparation is declining

1996 2003 2004 2005 2006 20070

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

Students needing remedial mathematics


Transfer students are behind same-age peersNative student Transfer student

Year 1 Fall Spring Years 1-2Intro. Biology 1Intro. ChemCollege Algebra

43311

Intro. Biology 2General Chem 1Trigonometry

44210

42-hour General Education block (AA completion)Courses may include:Non-majors BiologyIntroductory ChemistryAlgebraYear 2 Fall Spring

Cell BiologyCalculus 1General Chem 2

45413

GeneticsOrganic Chem 1

437

Pre-STEM students may also take:General Chemistry 1Trigonometry

Year 3 Fall Spring Year 3 Fall SpringEcologyOrganic Chem 2Organic 1 Lab

4318

PhysiologyPhysics 1Organic 2 Lab

4419

Intro. Biology 1General Chem 2CalculusPhysics 1

445417

Intro. Biology 2Organic Chem 1Physics 2Elective 1

434415

Year 4 Fall Spring Year 4 Fall SpringPhysics 2Elective 1Elective 2

44412

Elective 3Elective 4

448

Cell BiologyEcologyOrganic Chem 2Organic SuperlabElective 2

4432417

GeneticsPhysiologyElective 3Elective 4

444416

Transfer students have semesters with many labs and large contact hour loads

Native student Transfer student

Year 1 Fall Spring Years 1-21 lab, 2 non-labs 12 1 lab, 1 non-lab 14

Year 2 Fall Spring2 labs, 1 non-lab 17 1 lab, 1 non-lab 9

Year 3 Fall Spring Year 3 Fall Spring2 labs, 1 non-lab 13 3 labs 16 3 labs, 1 non-lab 23 3 labs, 1 non-lab 21

Year 4 Fall Spring Year 4 Fall Spring3 labs 18 2 labs 12 5 labs, 1 non-lab 29 4 labs 24

Heaviest STEM semester Lightest STEM semester

STEM Talent Expansion Programs

A partnership between four Missouri colleges (2004-present)

STEM Talent Expansion ProgramsNational Science Foundation (NSF)-funded Efforts:• STEP (STEM Talent Expansion Program) program (2004-

2010)

• SPECTRA (Scientists Prepared, Enriched and Challenged Through Research-based Activities) program (2010-2015)

• STEP Scholars program (2012-2016)

• SUCCEED (Strengthening University and Community College Educational Environments for Degrees) in STEM program (pending)

The STEP Office works to increase recruitment and retention of students in STEM degree programs

Our objectives include:• Increasing STEM degree production at Truman– Boosting student success– Exposing students to research opportunities– Facilitating mathematics preparedness


Our objectives include:• Increasing STEM degree production at Truman• Highlighting interdisciplinary connections– Offering interdisciplinary thinking courses– Developing interdisciplinary modules for course– Supporting Truman’s MathBio program


Our objectives include:• Increasing STEM degree production at Truman• Highlighting interdisciplinary connections• Supporting transfer student success– Offering scholarships and research opportunities to

community college students– Developing a STEM transfer orientation program– Identifying (and addressing) barriers to transfer

student success

We have been successful…For our STEP program:• Summer research students had a 57% success in

earning a STEM baccalaureate degree• STEM transfer orientation students had a 69%

success in earning a STEM baccalaureate degree

We have been successful…For our STEP program:• Summer research students had a 57% success in

earning a STEM baccalaureate degree• STEM transfer orientation students had a 69%

success in earning a STEM baccalaureate degreeOverall:• STEM Bachelor’s degree production at Truman

has increased 10% since 2003• STEM Associate’s degree production at our

partners has increased 111% since 2003

We have also learned valuable lessons.• Community college faculty are creative and work

hard to meet the needs of a diverse classroom• Community college classes are strong• Community college students do not think they

are capable of being admitted to Truman• Transferring with an AA degree often requires an

additional 3 years for a degree in STEM• Students leave STEM degrees for a variety of

reasons

Three initiatives may alleviate these issues

• Pre-STEM Pathways within the AA degree• AA degrees following Reverse Transfer• AS degrees in STEM disciplines

Pre-STEM Pathways provide better preparation for a degree STEM

MACC College Catalog 2012-2014

Pre-STEM Pathways reduce the burden of heavy contact hours for transfer students

Pre-STEM student Traditional transfer student

Year 1 Fall Spring Years 1-2

Pre-STEM with articulation agreement:Calculus 1 and 2General Chemistry 1 and 2Physics 1Intro. Biology 1 and 2

Year 3 Fall Spring Year 3 Fall Spring3 labs 18 2 labs, 1 non-lab 15 3 labs, 1 non-lab 23 3 labs, 1 non-lab 21

Year 4 Fall Spring Year 4 Fall Spring3 labs, 1 non-lab 19 3 labs 16 5 labs, 1 non-lab 29 4 labs 24

Heaviest STEM semester Lightest STEM semester Native studentHeaviest – 3 labs, 18 hoursLightest – 1 lab, 1 non-lab, 9 hours

Reverse transfer allows students to earn an AA degree after transfer

Missouri Revised Statutes (HB 1042) 173.005.1 (8) The coordinating board shall develop a policy to foster reverse transfer for any student who has accumulated enough hours in combination with at least one public higher education institution in Missouri that offers an associate degree and one public four-year higher education institution in the prescribed courses sufficient to meet the public higher education institution's requirements to be awarded an associate degree. …

MDHE Reverse Transfer (2012), http://dhe.mo.gov/ReverseTransfer.php

Students can use reverse transfer to take more STEM courses at the community college

Reverse transfer student Traditional transfer student

Year 1 Fall Spring Years 1-2

Calculus 1 and 2General Chemistry 1 and 2Physics 1 and 2Intro. Biology 1 and 2Reverse transfer for AA courses

Year 3 Fall Spring Year 3 Fall Spring2 labs, 1 non-lab 15 2 labs, 1 non-lab 15 3 labs, 1 non-lab 23 3 labs, 1 non-lab 21

Year 4 Fall Spring Year 4 Fall Spring3 labs 16 3 labs 16 5 labs, 1 non-lab 29 4 labs 24

*During years 3-4, balance STEM courses with non-STEM courses that satisfy the AA degree

Heaviest STEM semester Lightest STEM semester Native studentHeaviest – 3 labs, 18 hoursLightest – 1 lab, 1 non-lab, 9 hours

Several considerations must be made for students pursuing the AA

• Students interested in transferring into degree programs in STEM need to be identified early, ideally prior to matriculation to the community college

• Students need STEM-specific advising• Students must have college-prep coursework in high

school and enter the community college ready for Calculus• Some options transfer heavy course-load from 4-year

institution to the community college• Conversations between faculty could increase transfer

equivalency of coursework

Articulated Associate of Science degrees align transfer students with their same-age peers

a. Associate of Science Degree An associate of science (AS) degree is a specialized transfer degree that is intended for students interested in transferring into professional programs that have a greater emphasis on science and math. This is an articulated degree program that results from careful planning and agreement between institutions. These programs will be developed by consultation between sending and receiving institutions on a program-by-program basis. This process may involve changes in general education requirements. Students completing articulated AS degrees will be accepted as having completed lower-division general education and prerequisite courses equivalent to the lower-division general education requirements completed by native students in the same degree program over a similar time period.

MDHE Credit Transfer Guidelines, www.dhe.mo.gov/policies/credit-transfer.php

A student with a STEM AS degree should be comparable to a native Truman student

Native student AS transfer student

Year 1 Fall Spring Years 1-21 lab, 2 non-labs 12 1 lab, 1 non-lab 14

Year 2 Fall Spring2 labs, 1 non-lab 17 1 lab, 1 non-lab 9

Year 3 Fall Spring Year 3 Fall Spring2 labs, 1 non-lab 13 3 labs 16 2 labs, 1 non-lab 13 3 labs 16

Year 4 Fall Spring Year 4 Fall Spring3 labs 18 2 labs 12 3 labs 18 2 labs 12

Heaviest STEM semester Lightest STEM semester

Strengthening University and Community College Educational Environments for Degrees

(SUCCEED) in STEM• Fully develop the Pre-STEM Pathways programs– Mechanism for identification as a Pre-STEM student– Pre-STEM advisor at each community college

• Design Pre-STEM Pathways with reverse transfer• Facilitate articulated STEM AS degree programs• Summer STEM Bridge– Residential summer program– Two majors-level STEM courses

• Reinstate the STEM-specific transfer orientation

Web Portal: http://step.truman.eduEmail: [email protected]: 660.785.7252

Truman State University STEM Talent Expansion Programs (STEP) Office

bridging the gap between community colleges and baccalaureate degrees in stem

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