Nearly 2,000 students earned degrees and certificates from Glendale Community College last year — and about a third of those were transfer degrees. As transfer season approaches, GCC counselors urge students to take advantage of services like workshops and the Transfer Center to ensure a smooth pathway to UC, CSU, and other universities.
The transfer process is ongoing, with crucial deadlines to keep in mind throughout the year. Depending on the time of year students will find themselves at varying stages in the process — reaching out to colleges, speaking to on-campus representatives, working with counselors to ensure their course work is on track, transcripts are in order, application essays are compelling and competitive, or eagerly waiting for acceptance announcements. The end of April brings to a close the period when CSUs and UCs release their admissions decisions. Receiving a college acceptance letter is a significant achievement and to help students get to this point, GCC Transfer Center Counselor Nahar Ghodousi has some advice.
“It is never too early for students to seek our resources and services,” said Ghodousi. She explained that whether a student is planning to transfer in two years, or on a longer timeline, the key to success is taking advantage of available transfer resources early on. The transfer process begins a full year prior to admission at a four-year institution, meaning that by the end of their second semester at GCC students should expect to take certain steps toward beginning the process. However, some transfer pathways, like the UCs TAG program, require students to meet certain criteria within their first calendar year at GCC (including the Summer intersession). Students in their first semester at GCC should consider that transferring takes a good deal of time and preparation; working with a counselor to create a Student Education Plan is a good first step. An SEP is a collaborative course outline, a roadmap, that students create with a counselor to plan their academics and capitalize on their time at GCC.
Students who need help deciding where to apply can meet with representatives from other universities or sign up for a campus tour. Reps come to GCC on a daily and weekly basis to meet with students and begin initial conversations about campus culture, housing, potential scholarships, and what their schools have to offer. There are two campus tours left in the Spring 2025 semester, so sign up now. These resources will help students visualize life at a university and decide which schools to eventually apply to. This can be an intimidating decision. Some schools might feel out of reach while others feel like safe bets, but Nahal Ghodousi would urge students to go for it. “Rejection is better than regret,” she said. With the support and guidance of counselors, or strategists, as they like to think of themselves, students can learn how to make the right moves to get to their dream school.
The Transfer Center also hosts workshops (in-person/Zoom) covering different topics like transfer basics, admissions next steps, and even what to do in the event of a rejection. Workshops are hosted by transfer ‘strategists’ where they break down the complexities of the process and describe in detail the requirements of any number of transfer pathways; they are also a great place to ask general questions. For more specific inquiries, counselors can be reached online, in person by visiting the offices at the Sierra Vista building, or by appointment for longer conversations and in-depth strategizing. They can also recommend internships and extracurriculars to make a transfer application more competitive.
Over half of the students who received degrees and certificates last year transferred to a UC or CSU. The majority of these students earned one of 28 Associate’s Degrees for Transfer, which guarantee admission to any of 23 CSUs. These degrees with a guarantee allow students at GCC and throughout the California Community College system to transfer to four-year universities with junior standing. Following a degree program provides transfer options and a map of required and recommended courses to take on a two-year transfer timeline. Nahal Ghodousi mentioned that GCC is always working to add more ADTs.
Ghodousi and the team of Transfer Center strategists are a transfer student’s best resource. Organizers say that the process takes time and planning ahead is crucial. They recommend reaching out to a counselor, creating an ed plan, signing up for a workshop or campus tour, applying for GCC scholarships, and learning how to make a college application as competitive as possible.
Find more information at the GCC Transfer Center website.
Taylor Wiegand can be reached at [email protected].