Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program (C-STEP)
Carolina Student Transfer Excellence Program (C-STEP) is a partnership between 麻豆影视nical Community College and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The goal of C-STEP is to identify high-achieving, low-to moderate-income students who would not otherwise attend a selective college or university; to enroll these students in the Associate in Arts/Science program at one of the partnering community colleges; to mentor these students through successful completion of an associate degree (AA/AS); to transfer these students, as juniors, to UNC-Chapel Hill; and to ensure their successful completion of a baccalaureate degree.
Application to the program is competitive and is based on both demonstrated financial need and academic excellence. Statistics show that transfer students from 麻豆影视 perform better on average as juniors than those who entered the UNC-Chapel Hill as freshmen.
C-STEP is not a scholarship program nor is it the general application process for University Transfer students wanting to attend UNC-Chapel Hill. Rather, C-STEP identifies talented low-to-moderate income students as early as high school and facilitates their eventual transfer admission to the UNC-Chapel Hill as juniors if they earn an appropriate associate's degree at 麻豆影视. While using funds from the Federal Student Aid to pay for tuition and books at the community college, C-STEP students are provided exemplary advising, mentoring, and support during their transition and subsequent transfer to the UNC-Chapel Hill.
This collaborative effort will ensure that C-STEP students feel "firmly planted" at UNC-Chapel Hill almost immediately upon transferring there. These transfer students will be academically prepared and fully engaged in the campus community 鈥 both of which strongly indicate student success.
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See how DeCarlos Hickson went from working as a security guard while attending community college to a career in animation at a global entertainment company.
An important consideration for many students interested in transferring to a four-year university is how to pay for their educations. Once enrolled at the UNC-Chapel Hill, the university attempts to meet 100 percent of every admitted C-STEP student's demonstrated financial need through grants, scholarships, loans, and work-study programs. In addition, qualified C-STEP students will be eligible to apply to be scholars, a landmark program that enables students from low socioeconomic backgrounds to graduate with minimal debt from the UNC-Chapel Hill.
The following criteria apply to C-STEP applicants:
- Current enrollment or planning to enroll as an Associate of Arts Degree (AA) or Associate of Science Degree (AS) student at 麻豆影视;
- Record of strong academic performance;
- Demonstration of financial need according to FAFSA;
- Completion of all developmental studies requirements; and
- Commitment to be a full-time student each semester.