STEPHENVILLE — The numbers prove it again: Tarleton State University is one of the best transfer schools in Texas.
According to 2019 accountability reports released by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board, the graduation rate for two-year college students who transfer to Tarleton with 30 or more credit hours nears 70 percent, topping the statewide average by almost 8 points.
There are good reasons for such high marks.
Tarleton works closely with community schools like Tarrant County College, McLennan Community College and Hill, Navarro and Weatherford colleges to create a seamless transfer.
Students enrolled in TCC’s nursing program, for example, who want to earn a bachelor’s degree at Tarleton have a clear approach to compete the required 120 hours. Similar roadmaps exist for business, education, criminal justice and psychology.
“We’re constantly looking to streamline processes — from application to graduation — and enhance transfer pathways so students can fulfill their educational dreams while saving dollars and class hours,” Tarleton President James Hurley said.
“Saving time and money, ensuring academic success and keeping students in the region is important to the growth of North Texas and the state. Students who are educated in the region will stay in the region, and our region will prosper.”
The university’s founder, John Tarleton, dreamed of an institution of opportunity where any student who wants a higher education can receive one, Hurley noted, adding, “We value our transfer students, welcome them and want them to feel at home as a Tarleton Texan.”
Tarleton also is a vigorous proponent of dual admission, joint advising and reverse transfer. With dual admission, students take upper-level courses at one of the university’s degree completion locations — Fort Worth, Waco, Midlothian, RELLIS-Bryan — or online while finishing their core curriculum elsewhere. A minimum of 30 credit hours must be completed to participate.
Reverse transfers allow students to complete their associate degree after enrolling at Tarleton.
Vice President for Enrollment Management Javier Garza says program-specific agreements, dual admission and reverse transfer are proving successful as Tarleton becomes more proactive in its student advising.
“Academic advisers work with potential transfer students long before they arrive at our Stephenville campus or outreach centers,” Dr. Garza said. “They collaborate with community college counselors to tailor a smooth, transparent transition between schools.”
Tarleton is committed to the Texas Common Course Numbering System, which encourages state higher education institutions to label equivalent classes with the same prefix and number, instantly clarifying which credits will transfer from community colleges.
Only one Texas public university has more courses that mirror TCCNS classifications than Tarleton.
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