Students transfering to, not from, De Anza

Is De Anza College a graduate school?

It may be time to add that blurb to bus ads making their way through the South Bay. With enrollment reaching 2.9 million this year in California, community colleges statewide can expect a jump in reverse transfer enrollment this year.

This enrollment increase poses serious questions for De Anza and community colleges nationwide. How does the community college's role change in accommodating this demographic? As the reverse transfer population grows, what are administrations doing to include them in the social tapestry of a community college campus?

But before we get into the heavy stuff, let's get some basics down. What is a reverse transfer student? Unlike the generally well-known movement from community college to four-year institution, a reverse transfer is a student who comes to community college after already attending a four-year school.

The term reverse transfer encompasses a wide array of educational backgrounds. Bachelor's or Master's degree holders or not, this group made up approximately 20% of the Foothill-De Anza student population last year. This year that number is expected to increase nationwide. Yes, add this enrollment spike to your list of "things to blame on the bad economy."

But it's a little different for California. Although the nation may be nearing the end of its economic tailspin, our sunny state's economy is far from the path of improvement. In coming years, California's return transfer rates are expected to continue growing, even if the nation sees the opposite trend.

As a significant - and growing - part of the community college population, they deserve as much attention from administrations as high school graduate enrollees.

The added strain of more students has the potential to negatively impact everyone's community college experience - getting your necessary classes becomes even more of an uphill battle, parking lots fill up more quickly and resources get thinner.

But despite campus resources that are already at a breaking point, more needs to be done at the administrative level to ease the reverse transfer's introduction to community college life.

So what can administrations do?

Despite the perceived maturity and easy adjustment of return transfers (they've been to college, they know what it's like), many still struggle to navigate a new place. Community colleges nationwide have a responsibility to help this growing population of students find their way.

An example of such outreach was implemented last year at Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland, OH, which began offering formal group counseling sessions and meetings for returning transfer students.

While this population may arrive at community college with an inflated sense of confidence when it comes to navigating the bureaucracy of credits, college applications, and course registration, the fact is that every school is different, and it's easy to get lost.

De Anza and community colleges nationwide can implement programs and offer resources to help this growing demographic in their landscape, whether it's offering a class similar to "Orientation to College," specifically structured for reverse transfer students, increasing counseling availability or simply advertising its existing resources more widely.

Granted, funding is tight, but with an open mind and creativity, great things can be achieved without much strain on a college's finances.

While reverse transfer students are a growing population, this is not a group that sucks up administrative resources without giving back to the community college environment. Reverse transfer students actually have a lot to offer a community college campus.

According to "Reverse Transfers in the Community College" by Christine LeBard, this population can serve as a motivator to younger students. With their experience in the career world and higher education, these students often "display maturity, dedication and seriousness." Reverse transfers are also more likely to participate and encourage a deeper analysis in classroom discussion.

As the class delves deeper into coursework, professors also strive to come to class prepared for more - more questions, more discussion, more learning.

This growing population also changes the educational accountability of community college administrations.

Reverse transfers come to community college for different reasons, the top being specialized training, continuing education and personal growth. All this serves the overall purpose of a graduate education, at a fraction of the cost per unit.

In an effort to satisfy the needs of its student populations, who can be considered paying customers, community colleges like De Anza are, somewhat unintentionally, shifting their role to include a post-graduate quality of education.

Community colleges are an amazing resource for students and cost a fraction of the real-world value of their coursework. With this proud reputation in higher education, administrations have an obligation to proactively offer resources to all their underrepresented groups.