University of Scranton, Lackawanna College form more than 30 articulation agreements

CHRISTINE LEE, The Times-Tribune, Scranton, Pa.
·2 min read

Students who receive a two-year degree from Lackawanna College will be able to transfer those credits to the University of Scranton under more than 30 articulation agreements between the schools.

Officials at the schools in Scranton announced this week they signed 33 articulation agreements for bachelor’s degree programs in accounting, finance, operations management, history, political science, social media strategies, communication advertising, public relations and journalism and electronic media tracks, counseling and human services, human resources and occupational therapy.

The agreement allows students who earned an associate degree at the college to easily transfer credits to the university to receive a bachelor’s degree.

Erica Barone Pricci, Ph.D., the college’s provost, said officials earlier this year began working with their counterparts at the University of Scranton on the agreements.

She said while the college has allowed students, 80% of which are local, to transfer individual courses to the University of Scranton, these agreements allow them to transfer to programs at the university. The agreement covers approximately half of the more than 30 associate’s degrees Lackawanna College offers, Pricci said. She said the two schools hope to sign more articulation agreements, including ones that lead to master’s degrees.

Officials at the University of Scranton said the agreement will bring more students to the university.

“These agreements represent a new chapter for the University of Scranton, allowing us to grant access to a Jesuit education, through our liberal arts tradition, to a broader student demographic,” Michelle Maldonado, Ph.D., provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at the University of Scranton, said in a statement. “This is a proud moment in the history of the university, allowing us to embody our founding mission to provide affordable educational opportunities to the Scranton community.”

Lackawanna College students must have a minimum grade point average of 2.75 and enroll within one year of graduation to be considered, as well as meet other requirements as specified. Graduates with a cumulative grade point average of 3.00 or greater will be eligible for a university merit scholarship, with a minimum award of $20,000 per academic year for full-time students, in addition to any need-based financial awards students may qualify for.

Pricci said financial incentives will allow Lackawanna College students, many of whom come to the college more financially uncertain than a typical college student, a chance to complete their degrees. Tuition at the University of Scranton for the current academic year is $51,534.

“For the University of Scranton to make that gesture and include a scholarship in the agreement, that means everything for our students,” she said.