ABQ Times

The University of New Mexico (UNM) has inaugurated a new center aimed at supporting transfer students, a significant portion of its undergraduate population. The Transfer and Transition Student Center is situated in the University Advisement and Enrichment Center, Suite 170, Building #85.

The grand opening was held on October 21, coinciding with National Transfer Student Week. The event featured remarks from UNM President Garnett Stokes, Provost James Holloway, and New Mexico Higher Education Department Secretary Stephanie Rodriguez.

Pamela Cheek, vice provost for student success, emphasized the importance of the center in enhancing enrollment and retention by providing necessary support to transfer students. "In designing the center, we learned from many great local and statewide initiatives to support transfer students that have developed over the past decade," she stated.

Sarah Dominguez, transfer pathways officer at UNM, explained that the center offers resources for current and future students transferring from other colleges or through UNM’s Dual Credit Program. She noted that transfer students often face challenges due to their different experiences compared to traditional students. “Something like this didn’t exist before,” she said.

Statistics show that more than 40% of new undergraduates at UNM are transfer students. Among them, 51% come from other institutions within New Mexico. Additionally, over one-third attend part-time and more than half receive Pell Grants.

The center provides various services including a student lounge open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., advising staff availability for drop-in hours both in-person and virtually, as well as study groups tailored for specific majors or courses.

Dominguez highlighted the significance of serving branch campus transfers which saw a 36% increase in fall 2024 compared to the previous year. She also stressed the importance of supporting dual-credit high school students taking UNM courses.

Future plans for the center include additional events and workshops in collaboration with UNM’s Center for Teaching and Learning and Central New Mexico Community College (CNM). The goal is to collect more data on transfer students to assess program impacts on student outcomes.

For further information or assistance, contact unmtransfer@unm.edu or call (505) 277-7000.