Generally in the past, the uncertainty surrounding the issue of credit transfers has been a continuing headache for transfer applicants. An applicant might find out, belatedly, that coursework taken at one school would not be accepted at a second school. A general issue with transferring colleges is getting the new college to accept the coursework from the old one. Students often speak with the target college's transfer credit evaluator to get a sense of which credits will be accepted. In past years, the willingness of target colleges to approve credits was described as a "thorny proposition". The issue of transferring credits could be further complicated if an incoming school decided that a specific grade in the former school was insufficient for credit or if a transfer student decided to switch majors. There have been stories of students who arrived on campus with worthless transcripts:
There's nothing more frustrating for a transfer student than to sit down with a four-year school and realize they wasted two years because they didn't take the right classes.
-- Alan Byrd, admissions director at University of Missouri-St. Louis, 2012
A reporter explained that community colleges do not have articulation agreements with every possible target school, and that course catalogs can not provide information about which courses will be accepted at which colleges:
Course catalogs offer little or no guidance to students, why one class might transfer and the other won't. But that's because each four-year school may treat a particular class differently. The University of Missouri might accept an English course rejected by the University of Kansas. There can even be differences within a campus, with a science course counting toward a general education degree but failing to satisfy a school's nursing program. As a result, it's not always clear whether a course will be accepted when a student decides to transfer.
-- Reporter Tim Barker in St. Louis Today, 2012
Despite past difficulties with transferring credits, there are numerous reports that colleges are seeking more transfer applicants. To expedite this process, many colleges are taking steps to streamline the credit-approval process and are being more open-minded about accepting credits. Some colleges have "one-stop transfer centers" to make final determinations about which course credits will transfer. The American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers oversees colleges and universities and determines such matters as college accreditation, and as a result, most four-year colleges accept credits from colleges that this body approves provided that the student has earned a grade of "C" or higher in those courses. One advisor suggested that students should "get in touch with their target schools as early as possible to make sure their course plan will work." Another successful transfer strategy is for students to complete their Associate Degree which, according to one report, will "essentially guarantee that all of their credits will transfer."