LAUSR

ABSTRACT Associate in Applied Science (AAS) degrees are designed to prepare individuals for career opportunities, but they are increasingly prevalent among students transferring to universities. Still, transfer experiences for AAS holders are fraught with barriers such as credit loss and credit applicability toward baccalaureate degrees. Using statewide data from North Carolina, we show increases in those transferring with AAS and degrees other than the more traditional Associate in Arts (AA) and Associate in Science (AS) degrees, along with lower baccalaureate completion rates for AAS transfers. Additionally, AA Sholders represented a greater percentage of transfer students among those coming from economically distressed counties, thus making AAS transfer an issue of equity and social and economic mobility. Remedies include embracing an access outlook among stakeholders when developing articulation agreements, communicating existing AAS transfer pathways, and letting increasing student demand drive innovation.