Transfer Tip #1: Complete your associate's degree

In Professors' Guide, a U.S. News and World Report education blog, Dr. Glenn DuBois shares ten transfer tips for community college students. Each week we’ll highlight one tip and provide resources to help you ensure a successful transfer from NOVA to your next destination. Stay tuned to ELife so you don’t miss out on this helpful advice!

Complete your associate's degree. National research shows that community college students who finish their degree program complete the baccalaureate at a much higher rate than those students who transfer with simply a grab bag of credits. (Source)

Many students are unsure about their ultimate goals when beginning college. Enrolling in a specific degree program (even one as generic as General Studies) will ensure you fulfill core requirements while you contemplate your long-term goals and options for getting there.

• To identify programs offered at NOVA, browse the General Curriculum Programs section of the College Catalog, which lists the required courses for each degree and offers a recommended sequence.
• Once you’ve decided on a degree program, contact an ELI counselor to be officially placed in a program. Then, download the appropriate Program Advising Sheet and use it as a basic checklist for choosing your courses.
• Finally, track your progress and run your Degree Progress Report each semester to determine which courses you still need to complete your program. See instructions for running your Degree Progress Report in NovaConnect here.

When in doubt, NOVA counselors are available to guide you. As a distance learning student, you can e-mail ELI counselors at any time with your questions.