Sometimes transferring from a community college to a four-year university can be a hassle and frustration for students; universities have very strict policies on what kinds of classes are able to transfer from another college, and students can end up taking similar classes all over again.

Representatives from Western Illinois University and Elgin Community College have teamed up to try to eliminate that hassle by signing a new agreement on March 10 that enables students to enroll in classes at ECC and WIU at the same time during their freshman and/or sophomore year so as to provide a smooth and consistent transfer from ECC to WIU.

“Discussions have been underway for several months following the signing of the agreement,” Joe Rivers, WIU’s vice president of Quad Cities and Planning said. “The University is always seeking new initiatives to work with its community college partners throughout the state and beyond Illinois’ borders.”

According to Rivers, there are three pieces of the agreement that embody it as a whole: the Linkages Program, the Reverse Transfer Agreement and the Honors Agreement.

The Linkages Program is the portion that allows for simultaneous enrollment in both ECC and WIU classes during a student’s freshman/sophomore year and includes all of WIU’s degree programs.

If a student from ECC has not yet earned an associate degree and has transferred to WIU, the Reverse Transfer Agreement permits students to transfer their relevant WIU credits back to ECC to earn that degree.

Lastly, the Honors Agreement allows ECC honors students to enter WIU’s Centennial Honors College after the completion of their associate degree.

Rivers also claimed that “once a student signs up, and provided he/she maintains at least one WIU course (online or on campus in Macomb or Moline) each fall and spring, WIU tuition, fees, and room and board rates are guaranteed (will not increase) for four years.”

According to an article by WIU News, the presidents of both institutions claim to be very excited about the agreement.

“We are pleased to provide additional educational opportunities for students at Elgin Community College,” WIU President Jack Thomas said in the WIU News article.

In the same article, ECC President David Sam said that “We are very excited about our partnership with WIU,” and that “We are always in search of opportunities that will allow our students to make a seamless transition throughout their educational journeys. This agreement will greatly benefit our students and both academic institutions.”

This is not just an agreement between two educational institutions, but an opportunity that students at ECC might wish to look into and potentially pursue if it is in their interest to do so.

Indeed, the potential for all ECC credits to transfer to a four-year university is something that can be very difficult to come by with many universities hailing their own classes as mandatory when the general subject matter has already been tackled by students at ECC.

As stated by Rivers, “Western Illinois University and Elgin Community College have been long-standing partners in serving transfer students. These new agreements bring our partnerships to even higher levels, with even more opportunities for the high achieving students to continue their education and complete their baccalaureate degrees at WIU.”