Navigating Transfer Admission at Case Western Reserve University

In this conversation, Melissa Swafford and Eric Sustar discuss the transfer admissions process at Case Western Reserve University. They focus on the unique aspects of the university's single-door admission policy, application requirements, financial aid opportunities, and support systems for transfer students. They emphasize the importance of personal statements, academic preparedness, and the resources available to help students transition smoothly into their new educational environment.

takeaways

• Case Western Reserve University has a single-door admission policy that allows flexibility in major selection.
• Transfer students can apply using the Common App or Coalition App.
• A personal statement is crucial for students to share their educational journey.
• Financial aid meets 100% of the demonstrated need for admitted students.
• PTK members are automatically considered for a $25,000 scholarship.
• Strong academic performance at Tri-C is essential for transfer success.
• Students are encouraged to connect with professors for recommendations.
• Dedicated advisors support transfer students throughout their journey.
• The Alliance for Non-Traditional and Transfer Students provides community and resources.
• Campus visits and open houses are vital for prospective transfer students.

Transcript

Welcome to Transfer Take 5. Today we'll explore 5 aspects of transfer to Case Western Reserve University. I'm Melissa Swafford, the Director of Transfer Centers at Tri-C and your host. Today I'm joined by Eric Sustar from Case. Why don't we get started, Eric, by you introducing yourself.

Sure. So I'm Eric Sustar. I'm one of the associate directors of undergraduate admission at Case Western Reserve University. I'm in my seventh year at the university and the entire time I've been there, I've been working with transfer students. So I'm one of the few admission counselors who works most closely with the transfer population, including those who transfer from Tri-C.

Yeah, and so if you're ever on campus for a transfer event, in case it's there, it's most likely going to be Eric. So students will get to see you there. So I wanted to start just talking about admission to CASE, because it does look different than some other schools and the application process. the idea of a single door admissions kind of process, can you explain what that means?

Sure. So at Case Western Reserve, we use what's called a single door admission policy. Essentially, we have over 100 academic programs at the undergraduate level that are housed in four main schools and colleges, the College of Arts and Sciences, the Case School of Engineering, the Francis Payne Bolton School of Nursing, and the Weatherhead School of Management. And although students will list their primary and secondary intended majors, they're just that, intended. They're not restricted to only those majors it lists on the application or only that school or college they list. Instead, they're admitted through a single door to the entire university, which gives them great flexibility academically if they want to study more than one major, if they want to have a major and a minor, even multiple minors across the academic spectrum. So it attracts interdisciplinary students and also kind of creates that within students.

That's awesome. And so to apply for transfer admissions, in case you use the common app, the Transfer Common App, can you share what some of the key components and how that impacts the review process that you use for transfer?

Yeah, so we use either the common application or the coalition by score and the application itself is pretty straightforward. There are some materials that are required when they apply. Obviously their college transcript from Tri-C as well as any other colleges they may have attended. We also do require a final high school transcript that could be waived if the student has been graduated from high school for at least two years by the time in which they would enroll at Case Western Reserve and they would have earned at least 45 semester credit hours or an associate's degree. So there are opportunities to waive that final high school transcript because we want to make sure that students who might have been out of high school for a while or feel like their high school transcript isn't as reflective as them as a student now have the ability to do that. We also require a college instructor evaluation, which is effectively a letter of recommendation from a college instructor. We require a writing sample or personal statements. So my advice to a student who's writing that personal statement is to talk about their personal and educational journey, why it is, you know, that they chose to attend Tri-C, why it is they're looking to transfer to Case Western Reserve. What are they hoping to, you know, pursue as a major or career path so that we can kind of get from their perspective, kind of what path they see for themselves moving forward. The application is fantastic, but

We only learn so much from a student based on their transcript and the activities they're involved in. So the personal statement is really a chance for the student to tell their own story. Outside of that, we really spent a lot of time looking at the transcript. We want to make sure the student is academically prepared. So I would say we focus a lot on looking at what kind of courses a student has taken, how rigorous those courses are, how well they align with the future major and career goals of the student.

Speaker 1 (03:46.21)
So we're looking, you know, if a student wants to pursue something in a STEM field, are they pursuing advanced math and science courses? Have they had a chance to see calculus? Have they seen lab sciences like biology, chemistry or physics? We really tailor our review to meet the students where they are.

Awesome. And do you have any advice for a Tri-C student who is looking to stand out in the application process? I know you mentioned the personal statement, but are there things they could be doing while they're Tri-C students that would help them stand out?

Sure. I mean, I think first and foremost, it's making sure they have strong academics because ultimately when they step foot on our campus, we're going to expect them to be prepared for the rigors of our classroom environment. doing well in their Tri-C courses, connecting with their professors and the students around them. So they have a college instructor who's ready to write that letter of recommendation for them. Being involved in things like Phi Theta Kappa, the National Honors Society for two year community college transfer students.

taking advantage of opportunities that show that they're ready and prepared for the academic environment on our campus. And we actually have some partnerships with Tri-C through the Cleveland Humanities Collaborative and the STEM project where students could actually take some classes at Case Western Reserve. And by submitting a Case Western Reserve transcript with their application to us shows that they've already had a chance to experience our courses, have been successful in those courses and just makes their application that much stronger.

Yeah, it's been great. Both of those programs have really helped students understand, they see themselves at Case and what it means to be a student there. Any student who is interested in that just comes and sees the transfer centers and will get them connected. I know the other thing that students are often concerned about in terms of going to college or going to a four-year school is cost. With Case Western Reserve, we know that you meet financial need.

Speaker 2 (05:41.006)
I don't think a lot of students understand kind of how does that relate to cost. see a tuition price, but they don't really understand what's behind all of that. Can you explain?

Sure, definitely. As a private university, think oftentimes students and families can be deterred by the total cost of attendance. So we want students to know that likely that total cost of attendance they may see is probably not what they would be expected to pay to attend the university because of financial aid. So for need-based financial aid, we meet 100 % of demonstrated financial need for all admitted students, including our transfer students.

And that's determined by things like the FAFSA, the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, and the CSS profile, which is like the FAFSA, but through College Board. Oftentimes you'll see the CSS profile required by private universities like ours. So we require those two documents to determine a student's financial need. And then we meet 100 % of it, whether a little or a lot. So if a student were admitted to Case Western Reserve and have a lot of need, we will cover that the vast majority will be covered by grants, whether federal grant programs or university grants that do not need to be paid back through federal loan programs and work studies. So we put together a package that meets 100 % of a student's demonstrated financial need. In addition to that, we also automatically consider all students for merit-based scholarships. We actually offer a specific PTK scholarship that's valued at $25,000 a year. So a student just has to indicate that they're involved in PTK and then they'll automatically be considered for that scholarship. So between the need-based aid and the merit-based scholarships, most students are not paying our total cost of attendance. And if a student's admitted to Case Western Reserve, they would get their financial aid notification at the exact same time they get their acceptance letter. So they would know exactly what the estimated cost of attendance is and if it's a realistic option financially.

I talk about this all the time. That PTK scholarship, that membership goes with $25,000. That's amazing. Just the fact that CASE recognizes how important that leadership in PTK is, really important. I do think students don't understand what it means that they see that tuition costs. I think your explanation is really helpful in helping students understand.

Don't let the tuition, the cost of attendance be a barrier to applying and exploring cases. let's talk a little bit about what a transfer student can expect in terms of advising, because it's so important both at Tri-C and Case.

Yes, definitely. So there are lots of layers of support at Case Western Reserve. It starts with what's called the four year advisor, and that's with the student from the moment they enroll all the way until they graduate. Now, for our transfer students, they may not be on campus for years, but because a bachelor's degree is traditionally four years, that's where the name comes from. So this is kind of the general advisor, the person who can offer any general advice that a student may need if they're looking to take advantage of research. How do they get access to the undergraduate research office if they want to do an internship, where's the career center, how can they schedule an appointment, right? All of the different offices and resources available, this advisor can point them in the right direction. Once they declare a major, they also have a major advisor. This is someone from the department where their major is housed so that this person can offer pertinent advice related to the courses they need to take, graduating on time, all of that stuff. They also have access to pre-professional advising. So if a student's on a pre-professional track like pre-med, pre-law, et cetera,

This is a professional staff member who's offering advice about how to prepare for the MCAT to go to medical school or the LSAT to go to law school, anything that a student might need as they're walking that path to professional school. And then as well, we also now have a dedicated transfer advisor in our office of undergraduate advising support. And this is someone who's working with them not only in the transition to our campus, but will continue to work with them as an undergraduate student. So professional staff member who herself had worked at one of our local community colleges, so knows that pathway well, and can not only do the credit evaluations that students so need, but also really offer advice about that transition to our campus and how to take most advantage of the resources available.

We're very excited about that new addition and that extra layer of support for our students. Another aspect of support for transfer students is ANTS. And we're not talking about the insects. But what is ANTS and how does it support transfer students?

Sure. So ANTS is an acronym as all club groups that colleges are, right? So the Alliance for Non-Traditional and Transfer Students. That's a mouthful. Yes. So it was started a number of years ago because there was a need. There are students on our campus coming from less traditional backgrounds who are transferring to our campus possibly. And they banded together to kind of form their own group so they could support one another, have the advising they needed.

It host social events, connect with other resources in our community. And so it was a great opportunity for students who were maybe not the traditional high school graduate entering as a first year student to be able to connect with other students like them, right? Are they a student who attended a local community college or were transferring from another four year university?

Were they a couple of years out of high school, or maybe they're four or more years out of high school? Depending on what paths they might've been on themselves. So it's just a great opportunity for students to connect with each other and an advisor specific to that area. And I think especially some of our Tri-C transfer students have benefited from that. Students who are part of the Cleveland Humanities Collaborative and other programs really were able to connect with each other and stay connected to the resources on campus.

Yeah, kind of create that sense of belonging and that extra support network. That's awesome. Before we finish up today, is there anything else you would really want Tri-C students to know that are considering applying or considering CASE as a destination for transfer?

Definitely. So I think there are lots of great resources available to students on our campus and there's no better way to know about those than to come see us in person. We're not far down the road from any of the different Tri-C campuses. We have visits pretty much every day of the week. We host open houses throughout the year and at the open houses there are specific transfer student sessions. We host online webinars throughout the year, including one specific to transfer students.

So we want students to know that they're opportunities to learn more about us as they're exploring what their future might hold after they earn their associate's degree. And so come see us, come connect with us, whether in person or online, we'd be more than happy to engage and answer questions.

Great. Eric, thank you so much for joining us today.

Of course, thanks for having me.