To increase the number of community college students with bachelor’s degree goals who successfully transfer to 4-year postsecondary institutions, many states have passed legislation and adopted various types of transfer and articulation policies. Transfer is the procedure by which the credits students earn at one institution are applied toward a degree at another institution; articulation refers to the statewide policies and/or agreements among institutions to accept the transfer of credits. This supplemental note defines the various policies that are identified in indicator 34. All information on these state policies presented in indicator 34 was gathered from states in 2000 by the Education Commission of the States (ECS).

• Legislation: Statutes, bills, or resolutions that codify transfer and articulation policies. The content varies from state to state and may establish either general guidelines or very specific requirements for institutions to follow.
  
  
• Cooperative agreements: Cooperative agreements between institutions related to transfer requirements. These agreements may be formulated on a course-by-course, department-to-department, or institution-to-institution basis. They can sometimes take the place of legislation in the absence of official policy on transfer and articulation.
  
  
• Transfer data reporting: Regular reporting by institutions to state commissions or departments of higher education on the number of transfers. The reporting usually occurs either each term or annually, but sometimes less often. In some states, transfers are tracked through a student data system.
  
  
• Incentives and rewards: Specific incentives or rewards offered to students to encourage them to transfer may include financial aid (such as scholarships or tuition waivers), guaranteed transfer of credit under certain conditions, or priority admission to a 4-year institution assuming the student meets specified requirements.
  
  
• Statewide articulation guide: Concrete descriptions of transfer requirements and answers to questions students frequently ask. These guides are designed to help students understand transfer requirements and navigate the process successfully. They are often available on the Web.
  
  
• Common core: A common core of courses designed to eliminate the confusion that can arise when separate institutions require different courses to fulfill graduation requirements. (The common core usually applies to community college courses only.)
  
  
• Common course numbering: Refers to common course numbering for the same course at community colleges and 4-year institutions. This practice allows students to know with confidence which credits will be transferable.