The Effects of Structured Transfer Pathways in Community Colleges

Abstract

Most of the students who set out to earn degrees in community colleges never do. Interventions that simplify the complex organizational structures of these schools are promising solutions to this problem. This article is the first to provide rigorous evidence of the effects of structured transfer programs, one such intervention. Leveraging the phased rollout of transfer programs in California, I find large effects of the policy on degrees earned in treated departments. In the first 2 years, this growth was not coupled with growth in total degrees granted or in transfers, but in the third year, there is evidence of increased transfer. The analyses also show that the policy could affect equity; departments that offer transfer degrees became more popular and there is suggestive evidence that the highest achieving student groups enrolled in these classes at higher rates.