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 dean of undergraduate education, about the U's 

decision to cut back a little on the number of transfers 

The decision had raised a question in my mind about the U's commitment to increased cooperation with the 

Minnesota State Colleges and Universities (MnSCU)

 system, which supplies more than a third of the transfer students to the Twin Cities campus, according to U figures. After all, aside from some administrative efficiencies, what good is UMN-MnSCU collaboration for community college students if it doesn't improve access to the U?

(And as U President Eric Kaler announced in an unrelated press release today, “As a first-generation college student ... I have made access to higher education one of my priorities as president of the University of Minnesota.")

 he told me that just a sliver of transfer students will feel the cut. Those will most likely be students with below-average GPAs, and/or who’ve not earned enough credits to show they’re ready to transfer. The U will also tend to favor Minnesota transfers.

Below he essentially defends the small decrease in access, saying it's more important to make sure those who do get in stay in. He said the cutback is 

 a reflection of the U's commitment to collaboration with MnSCU. It won't affect the 

, he said, and is necessary if the U is going to help transfer students succeed.

As part of that initiative, McMaster said, the U is:

That sounds good for students who make the cut. But the U is still decreasing the number of transfers it's taking in, and thus decreasing access, right?

Some might call this the second move in that direction. You may remember that decreased access (as well as 

) was an issue raised in 2005 when the U 

Before its closure, the college was a way for underprepared students to gain access to the U. It had served as what the 

"pecursor to the modern community college"

With one mode of access closed just six years ago, how does McMaster reconcile this newest move with the mission of a land-grant university?

Here he stresses what might be his main point:

 collaboration with MnSCU that we've been hearing so much about?

McMaster said the U is starting to talk to MnSCU folks to see whether the university can expand both its Minnesota Cooperative Admissions Program and its community college pipeline for students interested in transferring into specific U of M programs. Such a pipeline would require the U to set more specific entrance requirements for transfer students.

Again, it makes sense from an academic standpoint. Whether that means that true "collaboration" -- with a eye toward meaningful access -- is on the horizon is something for you to decide.

Ed: On second thought, that sounds like a loaded sentence, which is not my intention. I see McMaster's logic on this one. Others may disagree, but I'm not necessarily one of them.

Education News

On Campus Blog

Alex Friedrich

Author

Just over a week ago I wrote about a conversation I had with Robert McMaster, the University of Minnesota’s dean of undergraduate education, about the U’s decision to cut back a little on the number of transfers it’s accepting. The decision had raised a question in my mind about the U’s commitment to increased cooperation…

How the U is framing the transfer access-collaboration issue

Go Deeper.

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