PSU ranks 10th in nation for transfer students

Portland State recently ranked 10th in the nation for transfer students, according to a U.S. News and World Report survey. With an 82.3 percent transfer rate, PSU ranks among the highest percentages in the top 10.

According to the survey, 3,486 students across the country transferred from other colleges and universities in the fall of 2009.

Of the 10 major universities that ranked high in the study, PSU is one of the smallest in terms of enrollment. Schools such as Arizona State University, University of Texas-Arlington and University of Central Florida all have enrollment well higher than PSU’s.

According to the National Association for College Admission Counseling, a third of all students in the U.S. end up transferring to other colleges or universities.

One of the many factors that play into PSU’s rank is the co-admission program that partners the university with six local community colleges. The program allows students attending community colleges to access certain facilities at PSU and affords the credits taken at those universities to transfer completely toward the degree at PSU they hope to earn. The same 2.25 GPA is required for both co-admission students and students applying to PSU as their first university.

Joan Jagodnik, PSU’s assistant director of transfer and college relations, is a transfer student herself and has been working for PSU for the last 12 years.

“I think our location plays a role [in the transfer rate],” she said. “We’re in an urban center, we have some very large community colleges around us; this becomes a natural progression.”

In fact, Jagodnik attributes the increased enrollment in community colleges to what she predicts as a trend that will continue to increase. Of the 6,831 total new PSU students in the fall of 2010, over 1,500 students transferred from Oregon community colleges.

Students can be admitted to PSU as a co-admitted student even before they are taking classes here, as long as they are taking credits at a community college. Clackamas Community College was the first co-admission agreement, a program that has been working for the past two decades.

“I think it gives them a little more confidence that their credits are going to transfer,” Jagodnik said. “I really think the choice to study at PSU is a huge draw. It is in the heart of the city, there is economic attention, we actively work with business and NGO’s and there is a political community right in your back yard.”

Brian Carter is a transfer student who recently completed a few extra classes after finishing his bachelor’s degree at the University of Oregon. Convenience for him was a big draw in attending PSU.

“Moving back home, I wanted to continue to take some classes while I applied to med school,” he said. “PSU was accessible and offered everything I needed to continue to be successful.”

However, PSU doesn’t just wait for students to come to them. Melissa Trifiletti, the director of New Student Programs, participates in recruiting trips to different colleges and universities across the country, talking to interested students about the draws of coming to PSU.

One of the factors she sees that PSU has that other colleges don’t is the unique transportation system of TriMet and the Portland Street Car.

Both Jagodnik and Trifiletti believe that the number of transfer students make up the unique culture of PSU.