Middle Tennessee State University and Walters State Community College in Morristown announced agreements Tuesday (Oct. 20) to make it easier for community college students to transfer and successfully earn an advanced degree at the university.
MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee and Walters State President Wade McCamey authorized agreements creating dual admissions and reverse transfer options between WSCC -- with four East Tennessee campuses -- and MTSU, located in Murfreesboro.
The agreement occurred at the The Foundry on the Fair Site, where the fourth leg of MTSU's nine-city True Blue Tour was held later featuring a reception for prospective students and their guests and luncheon for area high school counselors and community college staff.
The agreement helps establish programs to promote successful experiences for students wanting to complete a degree. Walters State students can now interact with MTSU advisers and have access to faculty and programs within their proposed majors. Students completing an associate degree will be granted access to register early for university classes.
"MTSU and Walters State strive for our students to succeed and this partnership provides another element to enable more Tennessee residents to graduate from college, fully supporting the state's objective to produce a more educated workforce," McPhee said. "This agreement allows for an easier transition from Walters State's campuses to our campus in Murfreesboro."
"This agreement offers our students the chance to get on a guaranteed track to earn a bachelor's degree while still at Walters State," said McCamey.
"We are eager to work with MTSU to make the transition process as easy as possible for our students," he added.
A student completing MTSU courses can transfer those credits back to Walters State to help meet requirements for an associate degree. To learn more, students should email transfer@mtsu.edu or visit http://www.mtsu.edu/apply.
MTSU, the largest and oldest institution in the Tennessee Board of Regents system, recently established a dual admissions agreement with Cleveland State Community College and in 2014 with Northeast State. Other similar agreements are with Nashville State, Chattanooga State, Dyersburg State, Motlow State, Jackson State, Columbia State, Southwest State and Roane State community colleges.
MTSU offers more than 150 programs including recording industry, Concrete Industry Management, aerospace, business and mechatronics engineering. Learn more at http://www.mtsu.edu/programs/.
Walters State is a TBR community college offering more than 100 associate degrees and technical certificates. It is considered one of the leading tech-savvy colleges in the country and is an Apple Program of Distinction.
The college serves 10 East Tennessee counties with campuses in Morristown, Greeneville and Tazewell. About half of Walters State students plan to transfer to complete a four-year degree. The other half complete associate of applied science degrees or technical certificates to enter the workforce immediately. To learn more about the college, visit http://www.ws.edu.