College Transfer Made Easier at MnSCU

Posted: January 2, 2002

Contact: Doug Anderson, doug.anderson@MinnState.edu, 651-201-1426

A student at one of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities can now transfer to another MnSCU institution with greater ease, thanks to the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum now offered at each of the 34 state colleges and universities.

Spurred in part by a new law that took effect Jan. 1, MnSCU officials have completed a review of program offerings at all state colleges and universities that identified core courses that will transfer to any other school within the system.

"Improving the transfer process has been a major priority in recent months," said Chancellor James H. McCormick. "By offering a full complement of universally transferable courses, and communicating clearly and consistently with students up front about whether and how their courses transfer, we will serve students better and improve our academic product in the process."

As part of the MnSCU system's push to improve the transfer process, every institution is required to provide students with information about transferring in their catalogs and on their Web sites. In addition, the MnSCU Board of Trustees is requiring that colleges and universities seeking to add a new program must specify how the courses within the program will transfer.

Last spring the Minnesota Legislature passed a law mandating that the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum be offered at all 34 Minnesota state colleges and universities. The law states that approved courses in any area must be accepted for full credit in that academic area at the receiving institution.

"I am very impressed with the progress," said State Senator Tony Kinkel, chief sponsor of the legislation. "Quality improves as these courses move through a rigorous review process, and students and taxpayers benefit by only paying for these courses once. Students at Minnesota State Colleges and Universities can make better decisions and transfer students will be much more likely to maximize their opportunities and graduate on time."

For the past year, hundreds of faculty have worked to realign courses and strengthen content to meet the standards of the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum. Last month 112 new courses at the 10 technical colleges were approved to be included in the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum, with several more under review and revision. To qualify as a transfer curriculum course, the technical college course content must be reviewed and certified by a faculty review committee.

In addition to the Minnesota Transfer Curriculum, which addresses general education, hundreds of technical college programs have developed program-specific transfer agreements with state universities to give students the opportunity to earn a bachelor's degree in specific career areas such as nursing, automotive technology or information technology. A Minnesota transfer web site, http://www.mntransfer.org, also has been developed to provide transfer information.