California’s higher ed system promises opportunity through its broad network of community colleges, particularly in high-demand fields like STEM. But for many students that promise is more illusion than reality. In their EdSource commentary, Pamela Burdman, Alexis Robin Hale, and Jenn BeVard note that students face a web of institutional barriers, from limited course availability and rigid sequencing to unclear transfer guidance and insufficient support. These obstacles, especially in math, undermine students’ ability to persist and transfer in STEM majors. Unless structural reforms are made to streamline pathways, improve advising, and align math requirements, STEM will remain a locked door for too many of California’s community college students.
The design of California’s higher education system has been influential for its twin goals of high-quality undergraduate education and broad access to college. Though our public universities are renowned for their research prowess, the focal point for access has been our extensive network of community colleges — now comprising 116 — offering students first- and second-year courses with the opportunity to transfer and earn a four-year degree at a university.
But for students seeking to transfer in STEM fields, that opportunity borders on illusory: While 16% of community college students nationally complete a bachelor’s degree, only 2% earn a degree in a STEM field. Misaligned math policies play a role in unnecessarily narrowing that path. Absent a coordinated statewide approach, that is unlikely to change.
It’s not just that a student seeking to transfer to, say, computer science has to take three to six semesters of math, depending on the transfer destination. Before even taking those courses, many community college students must first complete two or three math prerequisites. And, because the actual requirements may vary from campus to campus, some have to take extra courses to ensure they are eligible for junior status at more than one university.
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