ASSIST Transfer Channel |
 In This Issue
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1st edition 10.18.04
Welcome to the ASSIST Transfer Channel, the official newsletter of the ASSIST Coordination Site informing you of ASSIST activities and adventures. This first issue includes information about user activity, our new look, new features, and background and basics about ASSIST for new users. We hope you'll find the ASSIST Transfer Channel interesting, informative, and useful. We welcome your feedback and encourage you to tell
us about articles you think will be useful to ASSIST users. Future editions
will be sent only to subscribers, so please take a moment to subscribe.
Letter from the DirectorWelcome to the first edition of the ASSIST Transfer Channel, a semi-annual newsletter for counselors, advisors, faculty, evaluators, articulation officers, and everyone else who is interested in the latest information about ASSIST. As you’ve all seen by now, the ASSIST web site has undergone some big changes. We said goodbye to the “Backpacker” who graced the splash page for the past six years. After successfully transferring the perfect 60 units (that all applied to GE and major requirements) our student graduated with a bachelor’s degree and is working somewhere in cyberspace making lots of money and giving back to the community by encouraging more students to use ASSIST as they plan to transfer. There are some other key changes you’ve seen, all of which are aimed at clarifying the purpose of the ASSIST web site and making it easier to use. The most important change is that all prompting for reports has been consolidated onto one page so that users can see all of their choices at once and new users don’t feel like they're navigating through some crazy maze. All of the articulation reports in ASSIST are the same as before (plus some new ones discussed in the “ASSIST – New and Improved” article of this newsletter) and you can still get printed reports by clicking the “Print Report” button. The Exploring Majors feature is now more prominent. If you haven’t used it yet, check it out by clicking the “Explore Majors” button on the Welcome page. There’s only data on UC majors right now but we’re working hard on adding information for all CSU campuses to better serve more students. We’ll continue to make some minor adjustments to the look and language of the site, but the basic functionality will remain stable. And, in case you haven't noticed, you will probably have to update your bookmarks (and web links) for ASSIST so they reference the new site. Thanks to all the staff at the ASSIST Coordination Site for their hard work on this project – we’ve received a lot of very positive feedback on the redesigned site. On a more mundane matter, funding for ASSIST in 04-05 remained the same as in 03-04. Coupled with a few specially funded projects we’ve been working on, there is enough funding to maintain basic ASSIST operations throughout the year. We’re keeping our fingers crossed that there will be no cuts for 05-06. We’re e-mailing the first edition of this newsletter to many of our colleagues but we would appreciate your forwarding it on to any others at your campus who might be interested. If you would like to have future editions of the ASSIST Transfer Channel automatically delivered to your e-mail, please check out the Subscribe section of this edition for instructions. Lastly, one feature that we plan to include in each edition of the ASSIST Transfer Channel is a special section for students that you can print and hand out in transfer centers and other key places on campus. In this edition you’ll find a handy beginner’s guide for new users under the heading “Using ASSIST.” Thanks for your continued support of ASSIST and please feel free to contact any of us at (949) 824-4385 if you have comments or questions. Tune into the next edition of the ASSIST Transfer Channel in February 2005 - until then... Eric Taggart Letter from the Director - Printer friendly version ASSIST:New and ImprovedThis fall, ASSIST is sporting a new look with easier
access to articulation and new transfer related information. The new
design gives users more information about ASSIST right from the start.
We want to give students information up front about what is available
in ASSIST as well as links to related sites that they may actually be
seeking. Redesigned Home and Selection PagesThe redesigned ASSIST home page contains a variety of new features that provide quick access to transfer information. The center area of the home page has a brief explanation of ASSIST and prompts where users choose one of two paths to transfer information. The first path goes directly to articulation information. The second path presents major options at UC and CSU campuses and provides access to articulation information for the majors. The new and improved sidebar allows students and advisors to quickly see the types of transfer information available in ASSIST. When the mouse pointer is moved over any topic, a brief explanation of that topic is shown in the right-hand sidebar. Clicking the link displays the help page for that topic with a more detailed explanation. In addition to information about the data contained in ASSIST, we have also included information and links about other transfer-related topics. Our experience has shown that students often come to ASSIST looking for information about admissions, financial aid, or other transfer-related programs. Links to appropriate web sites that offer help on these subjects are accessible on every page. Exploring MajorsExploring Majors, accessible from the ASSIST home page, provides several paths for students to investigate major options at UC and CSU campuses. Students who have yet to select a major can begin searching a variety of areas of study and then narrow their search by choosing from the disciplines offered in an area. If students are drawn to a particular UC or CSU campus, they can see the majors offered at that institution. And finally, if a student knows which community college they are going to attend, they can look at the articulation available with that community college for specific majors. Information about UC majors has been available in ASSIST for the past year and the data for CSU majors will be available later this fall. This new option is a logical evolution for ASSIST because students are encouraged to complete major preparation prior to transfer. The additional information about majors provides a better context for major preparation articulation. New ReportsTo add to the ever growing ASSIST repository of transfer information, ASSIST provides two new articulation reports this year. The first is the CSU U.S. History, Constitution, and American Ideals report. CSU students must complete courses in U.S. History, Constitution, and American Ideals prior to graduation and may take the courses to fulfill this requirement while attending a community college. The new ASSIST report identifies the community college courses that fulfill this requirement. Also new in ASSIST is the UC Transfer Admissions Eligibility Course report. A student who wishes to be admitted to the University of California as a transfer student must complete a pattern of coursework for minimum admissions eligibility. The community college courses which fulfill this pattern of coursework are also now available in ASSIST. Remember that bookmarks and web links for reports from the previous version of ASSIST will need to be updated to link to the new ASSIST. So, Check Us OutWe believe the new and improved ASSIST is more useful and user friendly than ever. If you haven’t seen the new design, check us out at www.assist.org and let us hear from you. We are always interested in your feedback. ASSIST: New and Improved - Printer friendly version Using ASSISTIf you’re reading this you’re probably already familiar with ASSIST. Every new school year means thousands of new ASSIST users, though, and we thought this would be a good time to give everyone a quick general guide to using ASSIST. This article won’t go through every possible selection, but should help a first-time user get started. There are two ways to use ASSIST. Both ways use a lot of the same data, but they go through the selection processes a little differently. In this article, we’re going to only concentrate on one way – Exploring Transfer Information. (The Explore Majors button is the first step of the other available path in ASSIST. We will not explore majors in these steps, so for now don't click that button.) Explore Transfer InformationThis first path is the one most like the previous ASSIST website. It leads directly to the transfer course lists and articulation agreements. We start by choosing a California Community College or a university campus from the selection list. We can choose the campus we’re attending now, or the campus we plan to attend.
Once we’ve chosen a campus, more choices become available. Choose a campus and the second screen is quickly displayed. For these examples, I’ve chosen Orange Coast College. Agreements with Other CampusesAgreements with other campuses show us how courses at one institution can be used to satisfy specific lower division requirements at a second institution. Most agreements include specific information for lower division major requirements. For our example, let’s say we plan to major in Biological Sciences, and we want to see the articulation agreement between Orange Coast College and UC Irvine. This agreement will tell us how courses completed at OCC can be used to satisfy lower division requirements for that major at UCI. We’ve already selected OCC, so we need to select the university campus now. We could’ve chosen the university campus first and the community college second, but since we started by choosing OCC, we choose UC Irvine as the second institution –
Many university campuses also have articulation By Department, which show courses sorted by department, rather than for a specific major. We can also choose to all majors or all departments. Some university campuses also have articulation for their local lower division GE requirements. After choosing the Biological Sciences, B.S. major, the articulation agreement is displayed in the middle frame of the window.
Use the report's scroll bar to scroll through the report for the information you need. If you want to print the report, click the large "Print Report" button for a report that is formatted appropriately when printed. Courses Applicable for TransferTo look at the lists of transferable courses, let's return to the previous page. Click the "Change Report or Institution" button at the top of the report. This takes us back to the previous page of selections. Let's look at the lower half of the screen where the various types of Orange Coast College courses applicable for transfer are displayed. Pointing at any link or selection box shows some descriptive information about those courses or selections in the right sidebar. Clicking a link displays a report or allows us to choose a department or an area before displaying a report. NOTE: These links are grayed out, meaning they cannot be selected, when a community college is not chosen in one of the institution selection lists.
Using ASSIST - Printer friendly version Just the FactsHow many people are actually coming to ASSIST for information about transferring from a community college to a university? Probably more than you think. The numbers below show the busiest and slowest times of the year as well as how many visitors come to the site on a monthly basis. This information is based on usage during the 2003-2004 academic year. To help you understand the numbers shown about ASSIST usage, here is an explanation of the terms used to identify the activity on the ASSIST web site. HitsThe number of times any file was requested from the web site server (computer). A file consists of a web page and each graphical element included on that page. As a result, this number can be misleading. For example, a web page with five graphic elements will register six hits - one for the page itself and 1 for each of the five graphics. ReportsThe number of ASSIST articulation reports that have been requested. VisitsThe number of times the site was visited including return visits by users. VisitorsThe number of distinct users who visited ASSIST. Busiest Times of YearThe busiest time of year for ASSIST is in the spring when students are considering what’s next for them once the current academic year ends. Not surprisingly, the second busiest time of year is late in the fall when students are applying to universities. The numbers below show the most active months for ASSIST based on the number of hits, reports displayed, visits to the site, and unique visitors
The months of March, April, and May have consistently turned in the highest numbers for ASSIST usage since ASSIST has been online. The second highest usage period is in November, as you can see from the chart below.
VisitorsThe graph below shows the total number of visitors to ASSIST per month. Remember that these are unique visitors who may visit the site many times and that this chart shows the total number of visitors; not the number of visits. Again, you can see that ASSIST is visited most often in the Spring months of April and May.
The chart below shows the total number of visitors to ASSIST per month from January to September, 2004.
Busiest Time of DayASSIST is busiest between the hours of 10:00 in the morning and 3:30 in the afternoon. Use drops significantly after about 6:00 in the evening. Of course, we also see that ASSIST is being used all night long and into the early morning hours. The number of users accessing the ASSIST computer server affects how fast ASSIST responds to requests for information. When possible, use ASSIST earlier in the morning and later in the evening and you will find that it responds more quickly. Just the Facts - Printer friendly version ASSIST OverviewFor those of you who are new to ASSIST, here is a brief overview that introduces you to our beginnings, what ASSIST provides, and the kind of information you’ll find in ASSIST. ASSIST MissionOur mission at ASSIST is to facilitate the transfer of California Community College students to California's public four-year universities by providing an online system for academic planning that delivers accurate, timely, and complete information and operates as the official repository of articulation information for the state of California. Organization and StructureASSIST was created in 1985. It is a joint collaboration of the University of California, the California State Universities, and the California Community Colleges. ASSIST is funded by the California state legislature. A Board of Directors, made up of representatives from each of the public postsecondary educational segments, oversees development and establishes policy for ASSIST. The daily implementation and project operations are managed by the ASSIST Coordination Site with a staff of 11 employees. What ASSIST ProvidesASSIST is an online transfer information resource designed with the primary purpose of helping California Community College students plan for transferring to a University of California or California State University campus. More specifically, ASSIST provides students with information about how courses completed at a California Community College can be applied toward academic goals when transferred to a California university. (ASSIST does not provide information about private or out-of-state schools.) Students are able to look up the public university they want to attend and see the courses that can be transferred for credit between any California Community College and university. Students who have decided on their academic goals can see which courses will receive credit when transferred, what kind of credit is given, and how it can be applied toward their academic goals at the university campus. ASSIST also provides access to information and web sites related to transfer. In addition, students who are undecided about their major can now explore majors at UC and CSU campuses using the new Exploring Majors path in ASSIST. This feature provides information about the most popular majors on university campuses as well as links to the campuses that offer the majors so students can learn more about majors from the campus web sites. The Exploring Majors path also allows students to display course transfer information between a community college and the university that offers the major they choose. The transfer information in ASSIST is displayed in reports for the type of information, academic year(s), and institutions that were selected. The types of reports available in ASSIST are listed below:
Updates to Information in ASSISTASSIST includes several types of course transfer information. The various types of information are reviewed, approved, and entered by the community colleges and universities as appropriate. Articulation agreements in ASSIST, which are typically between a university campus and community college, are updated by each university campus based on the campus’s policies. Updates to articulation are often published at the beginning of an academic year but may occur at any time. Check ASSIST regularly for the most current data rather than relying on report printouts that may be out of date. ASSIST Overview - Printer friendly version Subscribing to the ASSIST Transfer ChannelSubscribing to the ASSIST Transfer Channel is easy. Click
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