La Sierra, RCC deal creates bachelor’s degree pathway for business students

The agreement provides a La Sierra scholarship of up to 30 percent of regular tuition to students directly transferring from RCC’s School of Business, Information Systems and Technology into La Sierra’s Bachelor of Science degree programs in business or accounting at the Zapara School of Business. Scholarship recipients must have first earned at least 60 semester units at RCC’s business school, among other criteria. Additionally, RCC business students aged 22 and over who have earned 60 semester units will be charged a discounted rate equal to 50 percent of regular La Sierra tuition on undergraduate units taken as part of the Integrated MBA, or iMBA Bachelor of Science completion program. The discount will not be guaranteed for graduate units of study. La Sierra’s iMBA program transitions students from completion of a bachelor’s degree into the MBA program. 

The agreement also allows La Sierra to promote programs and recruit students at RCC. Such opportunities may include “on-site information meetings, education fairs, and advertisements as approved” by RCC’s business school among other activities, the memorandum states.

Leaders of the educational institutions commented on the significance of the deal in further supporting the region’s students.

“I see this as a real opportunity to build upon a foundation,” said Riverside City College President Gregory Anderson. “We’ve been sending students to the university for a long time [and] this will allow us to expand that relationship and actually have students see us as one of their first choices.” He added that the agreement provides additional opportunities for RCC students who find that classes at state university business schools are full. “A lot of our students really intend to get their bachelor’s degree in business but it’s harder and harder to find a slot at a business school,” Anderson said.

“We are so pleased for an additional opportunity to work together with Riverside City College in providing greater educational opportunities for students in this area,” said La Sierra University President Randal Wisbey. “Riverside is our university’s home and finding ways to better serve our community is an integral part of our mission.”

“At the Zapara School of Business our motto and our aim is to create value and make a difference,” said business school Dean John Thomas “Higher education, particularly four-year degrees, can bring about increased employment opportunities and higher wages. As such, there is a direct and positive correlation between a region’s economy and the numbers of college-educated individuals it produces. We are excited to be a part of helping our region continue to grow by adding value to the lives of our community’s students.” 

The initial term of the agreement between La Sierra University and Riverside City College is three years. It will automatically renew thereafter for successive one-year periods unless terminated by either party, the memorandum states.

The business degree pathway agreement follows La Sierra University’s participation last summer in the Associate Degree for Transfer, or ADT program which streamlines the process for community college graduates to earn a bachelor’s degree in two years through 44 La Sierra bachelor’s degree programs.

Further information is available here: https://lasierra.edu/article/la-sierra-university-joins-expanded-degree-guarantee-community-college-transfer-program/

RCC and La Sierra are longstanding educational institutions in the city of Riverside. Riverside City College, established in 1916, enrolls nearly 30,000 students annually offering 96 degree and certificate programs. La Sierra University is an accredited Seventh-day Adventist coeducational liberal arts institution founded in 1922 on acreage that was once part of an 1846 Mexican land grant known as Rancho La Sierra. It provides more than 120 bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degree programs for about 2,300 students.