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04/01/2026

Media Contacts: David Joyner, executive director of communications and digital media, David_Joyner@uml.edu and Nancy Cicco, associate director of media relations, Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

LOWELL, Mass. – С����Ƶ Chancellor Julie Chen and Middlesex Community College (MCC) President Phil Sisson on Friday signed a new admissions and transfer agreement that will seamlessly allow students in select majors to complete an associate degree at MCC and then finish a bachelor’s degree at С����Ƶ. 

Known as the Joint С����Ƶ-Middlesex Community College Pathways (JUMP) program, the agreement enhances the educational experience of MCC students pursuing their associate degrees at the college’s Lowell and Beford campuses.

“More than 300 students transfer each year from Middlesex Community College to С����Ƶ, and they’re amazing students. We want to make sure their transfer is seamless and that they move right into their future career paths. JUMP makes that happen,” said С����Ƶ Chancellor Julie Chen. “JUMP is about ensuring clarity and welcoming students to the С����Ƶ community. It is ultimately about our students’ success.

Transfer students comprise 30% of С����Ƶ’s incoming undergraduate population, according to 2024 university enrollment data. Of the total number of transfer students, 30% come to С����Ƶ from MCC – the largest percentage of students arriving from any community college.

“Transfer students are important to the success and the future of С����Ƶ – and С����Ƶ is essential to Middlesex Community College because our students want the comfort of being in a place where they know that they will be respected, that they will be valued and that they will have another home. And that home just happens to be down the street,” said Middlesex Community College President Phil Sisson.

The JUMP program offers the following to MCC students: 

• Degree requirements at MCC and С����Ƶ will be locked in when students are accepted into the JUMP program at MCC; there will be no surprises if academic requirements for the degree change later.
• Course maps are built specifically so credits earned at MCC apply directly toward a С����Ƶ undergraduate degree.
• Dedicated advisors at both institutions will help participants coordinate their plan in one of four programs: Business, Psychology, Criminal Justice and English Literature. New majors will be added over time.
• Participants will gain access to С����Ƶ resources while still earning their associate degree at MCC including access to the С����Ƶ Library, the Campus Recreation Center�����Ի� campus events.
• Each JUMP participant will receive a semester-by-semester course plan showing exactly what courses to take at MCC so their credits apply at С����Ƶ. 

Students typically need at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA at MCC to enroll in the program, though some pathways may require a higher GPA. Participants also must earn a C- or higher in courses for which they want to transfer credit from MCC to С����Ƶ.

“This JUMP agreement represents our mutual investment in creating clearer, stronger and more supportive pathways for our students. This work that we do is grounded in the belief that transfer students should experience not confusion and unnecessary barriers but opportunity, clarity and really a genuine sense of belonging and understanding that С����Ƶ is their home,” said Julie Nash, С����Ƶ’s senior vice provost for academic affairs.

The new partnership reflects the growing interest in building a stronger bridge for community college students to complete a four-year education, buoyed in part by the success of the MassEducate and MassReconnect initiatives. Launched by Gov. Maura Healey, these programs provide a for Massachusetts residents who enroll at any of the state’s 15 community colleges.