Smaller colleges pack a big punch, as seen by the Degree Partnership Program through Oregon State University.
The DPP allows students to enroll in a local community college of their choice while being a student at OSU.
“My experience with the DPP has been great!” says Kimberly Britton, president of Tau Beta Pi at OSU, in an email. “This really lightens up my course load during the academic year, and I’d recommend it to anyone. Because of how it operates, the transferability between community college courses is pretty seamless.”
Partnering with all 17 community colleges in Oregon and three in Hawaii, students from near and far can benefit from the DPP.
This includes upperclassmen as well. “We do see students that will sign up for this their senior year, because, say they got a job in Portland they could finish up at PCC… They will get their diploma when they walk across the stage,” says Ricardo Debellis, the associate director of DPP.
Not only is this an opportunity to get your last few Baccalaureate Core credits for cheap, it is a program that can better your experience, as some students point out.
These community college courses are not a walk in the park, however, it is a good way to have a more intimate class structure.
For some, it’s a better way to learn as Debellis says, “You’re just getting more up close and personal with that instructor…All the instructors at community colleges have to be master’s degree certified in the subject area…They’re there because they love to teach.”
Fourth-year OSU robotics student Andrew Tucker shares the idea that “taking classes through DPP was better…The classes were pretty small (20-30 people) and felt a lot more personal than other Bach. Cores I have taken at OSU.”
“I’ve heard from other peers that some of the classes are taught much better than the ones at OSU,” fourth-year mechanical engineering student Marco Pulone says. “My math class was in person at the Corvallis LBCC campus. At OSU we had 3 lecture meetings a week plus a recitation, at LBCC the math was structured as 2 longer lectures per week.”
Although it might seem to be a better choice for most students, Debellis recommends giving it a second thought before pulling the trigger. “You’re managing two school systems, so you have to be willing to kind of take that extra step. Some students are willing to do it, some aren’t and that’s okay.”
But to those who have taken the steps and have gone through with it, they say it is worth their time and well worth the money.
“I wish there would have been a DPP when I was in school… I definitely think it’s a great opportunity for students to take advantage of,” Debellis said.
“For international students, it’s also a benefit because if they have DPP and they get suspended at OSU they can easily transfer to another school and don’t have to leave the country.”
For more information, visit partnerships.oregonstate.edu.