Officials from Northeast Texas Community College (NTCC) and Texas A&M University- Texarkana recently gathered on the A&M-Texarkana campus to sign an articulation agreement strengthening the partnership between the two institutions and establishing clear pathways for degree completion for transfer students. The new agreement provides a framework for developing degree plans and “pathway maps” that help students identify how classes taken at NTCC are used to complete specific degree plans at the university. The partnership also allows full-time NTCC employees to take classes at A&M-Texarkana at reduced costs.
The maps are designed to assist both transfer and reverse transfer students. The maps simplify the process of determining which courses need to be taken at A&M-Texarkana to complete a bachelor’s degree. For students who transfer to A&M-Texarkana before completing an associate degree, the reverse transfer maps allow students to earn their associate degree from NTCC using courses completed at A&M-Texarkana. Another benefit of the new agreement is a better understanding of the courses needed to complete their desired degree and the elimination of unnecessary courses and credit hours. This provides a smooth transition between the two institutions and helps students to attain their desired bachelor’s degree as soon as possible.
The agreement further establishes NTCC as a Community College Pathway Partner with Texas A&M University-Texarkana. NTCC students that
transfer to Texas A&M University-Texarkana will be eligible for special transfer scholarships. The Golden Eagle Partner Transfer Scholarship awards $3,000 yearly or $4,000 yearly if the student qualifies for and enrolls in the Honors College. The Maroon Eagle Transfer Scholarship provides a $2000 yearly award, or $3,000 yearly for students enrolling in the Honors College.
As an educational partner with the university, full-time NTCC employees now have access to significant tuition discounts on coursework in programs ranging from micro-credentials through doctoral degrees. Qualifying NTCC employees who are new students at A&M-Texarkana also qualify for the First Flight Scholarship, which allows them to take their first course tuition free.
“Northeast Texas Community College and Texas A&M University-Texarkana have a longstanding partnership that has helped many students achieve their goal of obtaining a four-year degree,” said Dr. Anna Ingram, Associate Vice President for Instruction at NTCC. “We are pleased to renew our MOU and strengthen our transfer pathways to continue this tradition of making a university education more accessible and affordable for NTCC students.”
"We are thrilled to dramatically expand our partnership with Northeast Texas Community College," said A&M President Dr. Ross Alexander. "This agreement streamlines the pathway and significantly increases the scholarship amount for NTCC transfer students pursuing bachelor's degrees at TAMUT. In addition, it provides attractive scholarships for NTCC employees pursuing degrees at TAMUT from the baccalaureate through doctoral levels."
For additional information about the new agreement or about transferring to Texas A&M University-Texarkana please contact Katelyn Sloan, Director of Transfer Recruitment, at 903-823-3060 or ksloan@tamut.edu
Article credit: Texas A&M-Texarkana
