Muskegon Community College (MCC) outranked all other colleges in Michigan for the rate of students who received federal financial aid and then transferred to continue their education at a four-year institution. The college’s 34% transfer-out rate was the highest in Michigan, 7 percentage points above the state average, and outpaced the average transfer rate across the nation.
The new data, recently released by the US Department of Education, pertained to students who started in community colleges in 2014 and enrolled in a four-year institution within eight years. Of the 556 students who received federal financial aid in 2014, 188 transferred to a four-year institution within the eight-year time frame. The report highlighted top two-year and four-year institutional partnerships in each state as well. For MCC the top transfer partner was Grand Valley State University.
MCC President John Selmon said, “This is a true testament to the hard work our staff and faculty do to help our students succeed. To us, it’s personal. We make the time to listen to our students, find out their interests and goals, and then prepare them for that next step. Tuesdays here at MCC are ‘Transfer Tuesdays’ with our four-year partners coming here to meet face-to-face with our students. This helps them connect with the university that best fits their needs. Then we provide the tools to help students overcome barriers and make the transition successful.”
More current data from the 2021-22 school year from mischooldata.org shows Muskegon Community College transferred 916 of its total student body. The majority, 228 students, transferred to Grand Valley State University. Other transfer institutions include Ferris State (92 students), Michigan State University (75 students), Western Michigan (36 students), and University of Michigan (25 students).
Selmon added, “While it feels good to be recognized, we know we still have much work to do. Transferring to a four-year university remains a complicated process. We applaud the Department of Education for conducting this study and are eager to see more interest in simplifying the transfer process across the nation.”