Santa Clara University Joining ASSIST to Help Community College Transfer Students

SANTA CLARA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Santa Clara University is joining a widely used platform that serves thousands of California community college students, as a way to better inform and ease their ability to transfer to Santa Clara.

The platform, ASSIST, is a California database and resource that helps prospective students determine which courses they’ve completed at community college will satisfy electives, general education, or major requirements at their target transfer schools.

Previously providing information mainly for those wishing to transfer to California State University or University of California campuses, the platform is now available for baccalaureate-granting schools that are part of the Association of Independent California Colleges and Universities.

Currently, Santa Clara University and 19 other private universities are providing transfer information on ASSIST, and 11 more will do so in the coming months.

“Joining ASSIST is just one of the many ways we are expanding our transfer-enrollment efforts in alignment with the university’s Impact 2030 strategic plan,” said Eva Blanco Masias, vice president for enrollment management at Santa Clara.

“This service will allow thousands of students who may not have originally considered us a possibility to include SCU in their transfer options,” she added. “The many hours of time and care invested by Santa Clara’s Undergraduate Admission Office and the Office of the Registrar to bring this tool to prospective SCU students are demonstrative of our commitment to increasing access for transfer students.”

The multi-phase effort is starting with seven neighboring community colleges including De Anza, San Jose City College, West Valley, and Evergreen Valley. Over time, Santa Clara transfer information will be available on ASSIST for students from the majority of California community colleges.

“For many students looking at transferring, it can be very frustrating and challenging to know for sure which classes will satisfy requirements for their intended major or core curriculum,” said Santa Clara’s director of transfer admission, Rebecca Ryce, a former transfer student to Santa Clara herself. “Being part of ASSIST will ease the process greatly for future talented transfer students seeking a Santa Clara education.”

Students seeking to use ASSIST can start by watching a tutorial or using the “articulation agreement” search function at assist.org, typing in their current community college, then clicking the Santa Clara University program to which they wish to transfer.

It is highly recommended that students look at ASSIST with their college counselors.

During the rollout, prospective students from other community colleges will continue to have access to the existing tools on Santa Clara’s website to determine transfer eligibility. The SCU Undergraduate Admission Office will also continue to offer daily campus tours, where visitors can learn more about the transfer process and meet with admission counselors.

About Santa Clara University

Founded in 1851, Santa Clara University sits in the heart of Silicon Valley—the world’s most innovative and entrepreneurial region. The University’s stunningly landscaped 106-acre campus is home to the historic Mission Santa Clara de Asís. Ranked among the top 15 percent of national universities by U.S. News & World Report, SCU has among the best four-year graduation rates in the nation and is rated by PayScale in the top 1 percent of universities with the highest-paid graduates. SCU has produced elite levels of Fulbright Scholars as well as four Rhodes Scholars. With undergraduate programs in arts and sciences, business, and engineering, and graduate programs in six disciplines, the curriculum blends high-tech innovation with social consciousness grounded in the tradition of Jesuit, Catholic education. For more information see www.scu.edu.