SMC increased its transfer of students to the prestigious University of California system by a huge margin – 32 percent – in 2001-02 compared to the previous year.

Holding on to its No. 1 UC transfer position, the college also led the state in transfers of African American and Chicano/Latino students to UC. In addition, SMC was No. 1 in combined transfers to the UC and California State University systems.

“This extraordinarily large increase in our transfer figures demonstrates our commitment to fulfilling our students’ dreams,” said SMC President Dr. Piedad F. Robertson.

Transfer Center coordinator Dan Nannini and transfer articulation specialist Maria Bonin are delighted with the "monster year" SMC transfer figures for 2001-02.

Altogether, SMC transferred 938 students to UC campuses in the 2001-02 school year, nearly a third higher than the previous year’s 709.

The college far outdistanced the No. 2 feeder campus – Diablo Valley – which sent 548 students to the UC system. And it dwarfed the statewide 9.6 percent increase of community college transfers to UC campuses.

“In sports terms, this was a monster year for Santa Monica College,” said Dan Nannini, SMC Transfer Center coordinator.

Nannini said there are several possible reasons for the huge increase. For one thing, SMC has added, over the past few years, a significant number of courses that are transferable to UC. In addition, the college has increased significantly its pool of counselors.

Nannini also noted that SMC’s high school recruitment efforts have gotten more aggressive over the last few years, resulting in an increase in the number of well-prepared, transfer-oriented students who enroll at the college.

In addition, SMC's high transfer figure is the result of the college's strong sense of transfer mission, a rigorous academic program, and an ever-growing reputation as the place to go to get into a four-year institution. SMC also holds one of the largest annual college recruitment fairs, with about 90 four-year institutions from throughout the U.S.

He attributed part of SMC's success in transferring underrepresented minority students to the specialized African American Collegian and Latino centers, which provide specific counseling and support to students from those groups.

SMC’s annual College Fair, one of the largest in the state, attracts representatives from universities throughout the nation and contributes to SMC’s outstanding transfer figures.

SMC transferred 98 Chicano/Latino students to UC in 2001-02, a hefty increase over 74 in 2000-01, and 27 African American students.

"Although the actual numbers of underrepresented students is still lower than we would like, we have reached and surpassed the numbers prior to the UC Regents' decision a few years ago to eliminate affirmative action for admission," Nannini said.

UCLA continues to be SMC students' favorite destination, with 557 transferring in 2001-02. UC Irvine has replaced Berkeley as the No. 2 transfer destination for SMC students, sharply increasing from 61 in 2000-01 to 103 in 200102. Berkeley took in 87 students, up slightly from 84 the previous year.

Aside from its transfers to UC and Cal State, the college sends about 1,000 students each year to campuses throughout the U.S., including such universities as Stanford, Cornell and Columbia.

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