Situated in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex—and in close proximity to two large community college systems (Collin College and Dallas College)—our university has been a go-to destination for transfer students interested in a top-tier baccalaureate education.
Transfer students make up more than 32% of our current undergraduate population. Ranging in age from 17 to 74, they arrive at UT Dallas with diverse experiences and educational backgrounds. We have exemplary transfer student retention rates--according to the most recent data, approximately 81% of our students persist from year one to year two--but we know that students who transfer between institutions often face a variety of challenges as they acclimate to new academic and social environments. Although 48% of our transfer students are 22 years old and younger, thus similar in age to “traditional” first-time-in-college students, some of our students have reported that they’ve struggled to meet like-minded peers, establish a healthy school-work-life balance, or connect to our campus community.
New Transfer Student Success (NTSS) creates a framework for helping new transfer students overcome these challenges, feel a sense of belonging on campus, and develop the skills they’ll need to succeed at UT Dallas and in their chosen career paths.
Developed with the most current student success research in mind—with a particular focus on sense of belonging and student engagement—NTSS aims to boost student learning outcomes, and thus both retention and graduation rates, by encouraging new transfer students to participate in what George Kuh, Vincent Tinto, and others refer to as “high-impact practices.” Of the many such practices in place at UT Dallas, NTSS is designed to enhance two in particular: peer mentoring and first-year experiences.
Aiming to help new students adjust to campus, we’ve developed an innovative peer mentoring program that matches transfer students with more advanced transfer student mentors who can provide support, encouragement, and helpful advice during that crucial first year on campus.
We believe that new students will benefit from close contact with an experienced peer who has already successfully navigated the transfer process. Our goal, as we work to expand the program, is to eventually provide meaningful mentoring opportunities for all interested incoming transfer students.
We are also working to increase new transfer students’ face-to-face interactions with their peers, as well as with UT Dallas faculty and staff, through the creation of enhanced transfer orientation programming. In consultation with current transfer students and key faculty and administrative stakeholders, we’ve spearheaded efforts to enhance the orientation experience for new transfer students so that they can better develop meaningful connections with peers and student groups, take advantage of university supports, and excel in their chosen fields of study.
Alongside these initiatives, we’ve gathered a cross-campus group of stakeholders to redesign our transfer equivalency tool, which will make it easier for prospective students and student advisors to evaluate transfer credits and thus make the best decisions possible when it comes to major and course selection. We’re also developing a new transfer services website that will co-locate information that’s currently found across several different web environments, making it easier for students to find key information before, during, and after they enroll at UT Dallas.
Although these projects are not formal QEP initiatives, they are led by the QEP stakeholder team and play an important role in making UT Dallas a more transfer-ready institution.
We know that students face a variety of obstacles when they transfer from one institution to another. NTSS is an integral part of our ongoing institutional efforts to simplify the transfer process and improve transfer student success.