Students with associate degrees from Chicago's Midwestern Career College (MCC) can now easily pursue their bachelor's and master's degrees in accounting at St. Francis College (SFC) in Brooklyn, NY.

SFC and MCC announced today they have entered into an articulation agreement, an official guarantee that SFC will apply MCC academic credits to its accounting degree requirements, allowing students to graduate from SFC with a bachelor's and, potentially, a master's, in as little as two years.

SFC and MCC plan to extend the agreement to apply to all other SFC degree programs in the coming months, enabling MCC graduates to complete degrees seamlessly in a range of disciplines outside accounting.

"Too often the transfer process between a two- and four-year institutions is unduly complicated and results in 'lost credits,' costing students time and money," said Gale Gibson Gayle, Ed.D., SFC assistant vice president for academic affairs. "SFC is proud that MCC has joined our roster of two-year colleges with whom we maintain articulation agreements, ensuring transfer students who enroll here benefit fully from their prior education investments and earn degrees as quickly and efficiently as possible."

SFC's renowned accounting department regularly places its graduates into some of the industry's most coveted jobs, including at Deloitte, Ernst & Young (EY), PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), and KPMG, known as the industry's "Big Four" firms. In addition to offering small classes taught by some of the field's top practitioners, SFC's accounting department opens doors to internships at the Big Four and other leading companies, setting up its students for career success.

"We're thrilled to embark on this relationship with MCC," said Michelle Steven, Ed.D., SFC director of professional studies. Dr. Steven and Sagine Relyea, SFC assistant director of online and post-traditional student programs, cultivated the MCC articulation agreement under Dr. Gayle's leadership. "It not only acknowledges the academic accomplishments of MCC students and ensures they can apply that work towards their next degree, but it gives them a chance to continue their education in the heart of New York City."

Under its articulation agreement, MCC graduates can transfer up to 98 credits to SFC that go towards one of three accounting degrees: the Bachelor of Science that qualifies students to take New York State's CPA exam; the B.S. not intended for CPA exams; or a combined B.S./M.S. program also geared towards the CPA exam (a minimum 2.8 GPA in six specific MCC accounting courses are required to enroll).

"MCC is excited to offer our graduates this convenient pathway to continuing their education at SFC. This articulation agreement delivers on our mission of empowering our students as they launch or advance their careers," said Jeremy Oberfeld, CEO of MCC.

SFC is currently expanding partnerships with local and national community colleges, as well as high schools, to grow access and facilitate seamless transitions into SFC's bachelor's and master's programs. These efforts are part of SFC Forward, the College's strategic plan and vision for 2023 and beyond.

"SFC welcomes all students with some completed college coursework under their belt to join us to complete their journeys towards undergraduate and graduate degrees," said Greg Bardzell, SFC's assistant director of success partnerships, academic affairs. "We look forward to presenting MCC grads – as we do with all our transfer students – their SFC degrees in the coming years."