New transfer center proves popular

By Buu-Tran Duong
Freelance Reporter

For those currently taking classes at LCC who want to transfer into a four-year degree program at Michigan State University, University of Michigan-Flint, Grand Valley State University or any other university, LCC has a new Transfer Center that has already helped more than 632 students.

The Transfer Center is located in the Gannon Building, in room 2204. Graham Berke is the systems & operations manager for the center.

“We had an international cybersecurity student who finished all 60 credits of his associate’s degree at LCC and just transferred to University of Michigan-Flint for their cybersecurity bachelor’s,” Berke said. “He began working with us (in) summer 2023 and was able to transfer in spring 2024. … He didn’t even know University of Michigan-Flint was an option.

“We got him the context he needed; helped answer his questions. He decided the program was a good fit. He applied, he got accepted, and he was off to the next chapter of his life.”

Graham Berke is shown assisting a student in the LCC Transfer Center.  Photo by Buu-Tran Duong

Berke shared another Transfer Center story.

“We had another student whose major was transfer studies,” Berke said. “Hundreds of students take that major. … They knew they wanted to go to MSU. Luke Richards – he’s the transfer specialist – looked at multiple curriculums, and the student saw the curriculum for forestry and said, ‘That’s what I want.’ They were able to apply to the program, got accepted, and successfully transferred.”

Berke himself understands how intimidating the transferring process may seem. He studied computer information and network security at LCC, then did Ferris State University's 3+1 program.

This entailed earning his associate's degree (60 credits) and university-level coursework (30 credits) at LCC before transferring to finish his final year (30 credits) at Ferris State University to complete his bachelor's degree, which saved him money.

He then transferred to Northwood University for his Master of Science in Organizational Leadership degree. He did this with the help of advisers from LCC and his target universities, in addition to sending many emails.

Now, LCC’s Transfer Center can help a student through this transferring process, start to finish!

“I tell students this all the time,” Berke said. “It’s so helpful to go find that curriculum. If you want to go to Central Michigan University for psychology, go to CMU’s website. Find that psychology degree program guide and take it with you to everyone you talk to: your success coach, your advisers, your transfer specialists.

“Don’t wait until that last semester when you’re about to apply to graduate. Ideally, you should be looking (to visit the Transfer Center) several semesters or a year (before graduation). The Transfer Center exists to help students set up a transfer plan, figure out where they are in their educational journey, their goals, and we help them get there.”

If interested in transferring LCC credits in the future, fill out the five-minute Transfer Success Form here, and the Transfer Center staff will schedule an appointment.