New Program at Mount Holyoke Eases Transfer of Community College Students in STEM Fields

Mount Holyoke College in South Hadley, Massachusetts, has initiated a new program that will ease the path for women in community colleges to transfer to science degree programs at Mount Holyoke. The community college graduates had a special two-day orientation program at Mount Holyoke when they became familiar with the college’s science facilities and laboratories. They also participated in a mock biology assignment. The community college transfer students will take a one-credit course this semester entitled Science in the World that will ease their transition into the college’s scientific community.

The new program, funded by a $600,000 grant from the National Science Foundation, will offer weekly meetings with science faculty, specially designed courses, intensive advising, and access to peer networks.

The program is under the direction Sarah Bacon, professor of biological sciences, psychology professor Becky Wai-Ling Packard, and Darby Dya, a professor of astronomy.