Miami-Dade, UW-Madison to sign transfer agreement

UW–Madison is joining with Miami-Dade Community College to recruit high-achieving transfer students.

M-DCC currently has more than 60 articulation agreements with colleges and universities across the country, including such Ivy League institutions as Smith College. It is also the most diverse community college in the nation, with students representing more than 150 countries and speaking more than 100 languages.

According to an agreement between the two schools, M-DCC students with a 3.5 grade point average and a recommendation from an academic dean will be considered for a scholarship at UW–Madison. Up to five students a year will be considered. Students who transfer under this program must maintain a 3.0 GPA at UW–Madison.

UW–Madison Chancellor John Wiley and M-DCC President Eduardo J. Padron signed the transfer agreement, March 22, at M-DCC’s Wolfson Campus in downtown Miami.

“Miami-Dade Community College is one of the finest two-year institutions in the nation, and it is with great anticipation that we enter into this agreement,” says Wiley.

“This agreement will provide a tremendous opportunity for our highest-achieving students to attend one of the most prestigious universities in the nation,” Padron says. “It is also a great compliment to the quality of our faculty, curriculum and honors program that UW–Madison selected us as an academic partner.”

Wiley says that UW–Madison alumni in the Miami area originally suggested the transfer agreement and are helping to underwrite the scholarships.

Students who attend M-DCC for two years and maintain the criteria set forth in the transfer agreement can then be considered for admission to UW–Madison as a junior.

M-DCC is the largest single district, multicampus, two-year college in the nation, with six campuses and numerous outreach centers, more than 7,500 employees serving more than 130,000 students, and an operating budget exceeding $500 million.

M-DCC is also the top associate degree producer in the country, according to U.S. Department of Education data, with approximately 5,000 degrees conferred annually in all disciplines. The college is ranked No. 1 nationally for: associate degrees overall; liberal arts and sciences degrees; associate degrees to minorities; associate degrees to Hispanics and African-Americans; associate degrees in nursing; and associate degrees in the health professions and related sciences.