Cultivating a Transfer-Receptive Culture: Exploring the Figured World of STEM Transfer Students in a Community College-to-Four-Year Bridge Program

This study examines the experiences of STEM aspiring community college transfer students engaged in a STEM Bridge program, designed to address critical barriers in transfer pathways, including financial challenges, poor communication of transfer policies, and institutional challenges that result from ineffective partnerships between community colleges and four year institutions. Aimed at creating a transfer-receptive culture, the STEM Bridge program also provides pre- and post-transfer support to participants in order to mitigate transfer shock and promote success in STEM degrees. We use focus groups conducted with STEM Bridge participants on a longitudinal basis from pre-transfer through to graduation to investigate (1) how STEM transfer students narrate their transition into and experience in a four-year institution and (2) how their experiences conform to or resist perceived institutional messaging students report about what is required to succeed in STEM. This study employs an adapted ethnographic approach to analyze narratives. Notable findings include the impact of perceived instructional quality and care by professors, navigational support by advisors and mentors, and emotional support by social networks. We conclude by recommending that four-year institutions recognize the critical role socio-academic integration has in cultivating transfer receptivity and supporting academic success for community college transfer students.