MI Transfer Agreement (MTA)

In 2012, the Michigan legislature included boilerplate language in the community college appropriations bill that focused on improving the transferability of core college courses by revising the current Michigan Association of Collegiate Registrars & Admissions Officers (MACRAO) agreement. The language created a state committee that included 5 community college representatives, five individuals from the public universities, and four legislators (two from each chamber).

The MTA took effect for students who begin their studies in the fall 2014 semester.

Students who started prior to fall 2014 will be able to complete the existing MACRAO Agreement until the end of the summer 2019. Students may also choose to follow the MTA.

Guiding principles and recommendations for a revised "Michigan Transfer Agreement" (MTA)

• Make the agreement simple and easy to understand
• Keep the agreement student-focused
• Treat transfer students the same as native students at the receiving institution
• Acknowledge the distinction between the MTA and degree requirements
• Promote transparency among institutions to ensure accurate transfer information for students
• Require students to complete at least one credit-bearing course at the institution awarding the MTA

How the MTA Agreement Works

To fulfill the Michigan Transfer Agreement, students must successfully complete at least 30 credits with at least a 2.0 in each course: one course in English Composition; a second course in English Composition or 1 course in Communication; 1 course in Mathematics; 2 courses in Social Sciences (from two disciplines); 2 courses in Humanities and Fine Arts (from two disciplines excluding studio and performance courses); 2 courses in Natural Science including one with laboratory experience (from two disciplines).

Students must complete at least one credit-bearing course at this college for WCC to award the MTA.

Changes effective 2016-2017

The MTA 2.0 Ad Hoc Committee was established in an effort to address topics that were unable to be discussed and/or resolved during the Agreement's initial development and implementation. Based on the Committee's work, the following updates or clarifications have been made to the MTA agreement.

1. A course geared towards a specific career, and uses it in the title (e.g., Mathematics for Teachers), is to be treated as an occupational course; thus, it cannot be applied towards the MTA.
2. Out of state credit is applicable towards the MTA when deemed appropriate by the sending institution.
3. Dual enrollment credit is applicable towards the MTA when deemed appropriate by the sending institution.
4. Advanced Placement (AP) credit is applicable towards the MTA when deemed appropriate by the sending institution; however, the receiving institution may determine transferability contingent upon its current AP acceptance policy. It is incumbent upon sending institutions to advise transferring students accordingly. NOTE: Additional areas of prior learning are not applicable to the MTA at this time (e.g., International Baccalaureate-IB, College-Level Examination Program-CLEP, DANTES Subject Standardized Test-DSST, etc.).

Michigan Transfer Agreement (MTA) (2019 - 2020 Catalog)

The course numbers of MTA-approved courses are listed here. Course numbers in italics below include a laboratory component. Items marked with an icon are available online.

Course numbers in bold and with a are the most likely courses to seamlessly transfer to nearly any four-year institution in Michigan.

 *Note: The same course cannot be counted twice in two areas of the MTA agreement.