DUBLIN – Bladen Community College and the University of Mount Olive have reached a partnership agreement that will enhance and expand options for community college students.
Through the partnership agreement BCC students who have earned an associate of applied science degree can transfer seamlessly into an array of programs at UMO. The agreement also honors the transfer of associate of arts and associate of science graduates’ programs of study.
According to the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics, 15 percent of community college students who transfer lose nearly all of their credits in the process, costing them precious time and money. Another third lose a significant proportion of their credits. In all, students who transfer from any kind of college or university to another lose an average of 13 credits when they do, and nearly 40 percent get no credit for the work they’ve already completed. That is exactly what a recent agreement between the University of Mount Olive (UMO) and Bladen Community College (BCC) plans to guard against.
In the partnership, the University of Mount Olive and Bladen Community College will enhance and expand the University of Mount Olive’s participation as a signatory institution in the North Carolina Community College System Independent Colleges and Universities Universal General Education Transfer Component Agreement (UGETC). It also allows BCC students to be eligible to apply for all state and federal financial aid.
To make it even easier, the University of Mount Olive will have an admission representative on site at BCC with regular hours for advising students interested in transferring to UMO. UMO will provide current BCC students and recent graduates guaranteed admission and acceptance of appropriate transfer hours, up to 64 credits from specified AAS programs with a minimum GPA of 2.0 on a 4.0 scale. BCC graduates will be eligible for consideration of the full range of academic programs at the University of Mount Olive locations.
The partnership between UMO and BCC is what Dr. Philip P. Kerstetter, president of the University of Mount Olive, says will create an excellent opportunity for community college students to continue their education and prepare them for the future. According to Dr. William Findt, president of Bladen Community College, the partnership is a benefit to BCC students.
“This agreement with the University of Mount Olive,” states Findt, “provides another opportunity for Bladen students to earn a bachelor’s degree from an institution that values community college students and provides a pathway for earning the bachelor’s degree.”
For more information about college transfer credits at BCC, contact the guidance office at 910 879-5620. For more information about the University of Mt. Olive, visit www.umo.edu.
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