The South Carolina Commission on Higher Education is pleased to announce that more than 20 public colleges and universities across the state have agreed to develop a comprehensive statewide transfer agreement that will help transfer students graduate on time.

Approximately 60 percent of students transfer some type of credit during their college experience, according to The John N. Gardner Institute. National statistics show that on average, transfer students accumulate about 12 more credit hours on their way to a bachelor’s degree than students who attend a single school from start to finish. Effective transfer and articulation processes can help students avoid extra or duplicative coursework and reduce the overall cost of higher education by contributing to on-time completion.

“A high level of cooperation and collaboration among institutions is critical to optimizing student transfer. This statement demonstrates South Carolina’s commitment to becoming a national leader in transfer excellence,” said Rusty L. Monhollon, Ph.D., president and executive director of the CHE. “College students earn credit from more sources now than at any time in history, and agreeing to work together shows tremendous vision on the part of these institutions as they seek to serve our highly mobile student population better.”

The agreement was signed by presidents and chancellors of the institutions. The language of the agreement reinforces institutional commitments to creating and sustaining a comprehensive credit transfer process, while also recognizing the need for institutions to maintain autonomy over admission standards, grading policies, and residency and graduation requirements.

Promoting transfer excellence has become a key priority of the CHE in recent years.

In 2021, the CHE partnered with the John N. Gardner Institute for Excellence in Undergraduate Education and the State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) to facilitate a statewide task force of transfer experts from public, technical, and independent institutions to increase excellence in state systems of transfer across all sectors of post-secondary education. This task force released a detailed transfer and articulation action plan in February of 2023, and the General Assembly endorsed its recommendations in Proviso 117.135. The CHE has also facilitated the formation of the South Carolina Transfer Council, comprised of a Leadership Team and four working groups that are charged with implementation of the action plan recommendations. In addition to the work of the Transfer Council, the CHE has also hosted two Transfer Excellence Convenings this year to further advance the work.

The signed agreement is available at:  https://che.sc.gov/sites/che/files/Documents/Institutions%20and%20Educators/Transfer%20Excellence%20Center/2023.10.24_Commitment_to_Transfer_Agreement.pdf

Additional information on transfer-related initiatives is available at https://che.sc.gov/transfer

(South Carolina Commission on Higher Education Press Release)