Modesto Junior College is now offering two new associate degree options that provide completing students priority consideration at a California State University (CSU) when applying to a program similar to one of the new degrees.

MJC’s new Associate of Arts Transfer (AA-T) in Communications Studies and the Associate of Science Transfer (AS-T) in Mathematics are part of the college’s implementation of the Student Transfer Achievement Reform (STAR) Act - SB 1440, which was signed into law on September 29, 2010. The bill, authored by Senator Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), was co-sponsored by the California Community Colleges and supported by its chancellor, Jack Scott, and CSU Chancellor Charles Reed.

According to the California Community Colleges State Chancellor’s Office, over 60 percent of CSU students come from community colleges.

“We are excited to offer these new degrees beginning in the 2011-12 academic year,” said MJC Vice President of Instruction Karen Walters Dunlap, who is also serving as acting president for the college. “These courses of study provide a seamless pathway from a community college to a four-year institution, preventing loss of time or money that can occur if an MJC course is not accepted by a university. We look forward to adding more associate degrees for transfer in coming years.”

SB 1440 requires a community college district to grant an associate degree for transfer to a student once they have met the degree and transfer requirements for a particular major. Upon completion of the transfer associate degree, the student is eligible for transfer into the CSU system as a junior. The bill prohibits a community college from adding local course requirements in addition to those specified in the STAR Act. Similarly, SB1440 prohibits a CSU from requiring a transferring student to repeat courses similar to those taken at the community college that counted toward their associate degree for transfer.

MJC has published a 2011-12 College Catalog Addendum online that includes information on the recently approved degrees. The catalog addendum spells out graduation requirements for students who pursue one of the new degrees, with each entailing completion of 60 transferrable units that are a combination of general education and major preparation courses. Once a student completes the AA-T or AS-T and has transferred, they are required to complete no more than 60 units at the CSU to earn a bachelor’s degree, with the exception of designated “high-unit” majors.

Additional information is available online in the MJC 2011-12 Catalog Addendum located at http://www.mjc.edu/common/catalog/pdfs/1112/addendum_2011_12_web.pdf.