Housed in the College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences, or CLASS, the pilot will streamline transfers after students complete associate degrees at one of five Houston-area community colleges, reducing the cost of a four-year degree.
UH Next is part of UH’s broader effort to improve affordability, alongside programs like Cougar Promise and various scholarships and financial aid options, per an Oct. 2 news release.
“Our goal is to increase college access, speed the time to bachelor’s degree completion and prepare more Texas students for the job market,” Todd Romero, associate dean of undergraduate studies in CLASS, said in the release.
The background
The program is backed by a $378,000 grant from the Greater Texas Foundation to support program staffing, events, recruitment and promotion for the program, according to the release.
Unlike existing community-college-to-UH field-specific pathways, such as the Houston City College Engineering Academy in Katy, UH Next is a broad 2+2 transfer program offering access to 50 majors across 16 departments in CLASS, including humanities, social sciences, allied health and interdisciplinary studies, Romero said in an email.
“We have such a large variety of majors that you can really get to any career with a CLASS degree,” UH Next Program Director Rachel Poling said in the release. “Our degrees really teach students those transferable skills that are always going to be valuable in the workplace.”
Romero said the program was inspired by the University of South Florida’s Fuse program, which he said nearly doubled enrollment from 2019 to 2024, while other Florida College System schools declined. Additionally, he said Fuse students also have higher retention compared to non-Fuse students, at 92% to 81%, and higher GPAs, at 3.81, compared to 2.84.
Other recent initiatives to eliminate barriers for students include the Academic Fresh Start program, which aims to eliminate outdated, poor grades that hinder students from continuing their education, officials previously said.
How it works
Enrolled students will follow four-year degree maps, co-created by advisors at UH and the partner college to ensure they take the right courses in the right order, minimizing credit loss and keeping them on track for graduation. However, the program is only available for select majors within each partner community college, per the release. Partner colleges include:
- Houston City College, formerly Houston Community College
- Wharton County Junior College
- Alvin Community College
- College of the Mainland
- San Jacinto College
Per the website, steps toward transferring once signing up for UH Next include:
- Enrolling in community college courses that match the UH Next degree plan
- Meeting with a community college advisor each semester
- Earning an associate's degree while preparing to transfer
- Applying to UH through the Common App or Apply Texas before the final semester
- Verifying with a community college advisor that all associate degree requirements are complete
Next steps
Timothy Council, associate vice provost of UH’s enrollment services, said in an email that there is no timeline for expansion to other colleges, although several are assessing opportunities to create a UH Next pathway.
Students interested in joining UH Next can apply by visiting the program’s website and completing the online application.
