UW-Eau Claire, Chippewa Valley Technical College collaborate to remove barriers for transfer students

Building on the longstanding collaboration between the two institutions, the new articulation agreements will help students more easily transfer credits earned at CVTC to pursue four-year degrees at UW-Eau Claire.

“We are thrilled,” Dr. Lisa Jepsen, dean of UW-Eau Claire’s College of Business, says. “The articulation agreements are the culmination of a series of workshops and collaborations between business faculty at CVTC and UWEC, and that work will have an immediate impact for students.”

The new agreements will help students pursuing associate of arts or associate of applied sciences degrees at CVTC to easily transfer into a bachelor of business administration program in marketing, management, human resource management, entrepreneurship, sport management emphasis, business finance and accounting. Students pursuing associate of arts degrees in business management and accounting at CVTC will be able to apply all credits earned toward a bachelor’s in business administration degree program when they transfer to UW-Eau Claire.

Jepsen says the team in the College of Business looked in the mirror during UW-Eau Claire’s Vision 2030 planning process and realized there were unnecessary hurdles standing in the way of students interested in earning degrees at UW-Eau Claire. Jepsen says the College of Business worked closely with UW-Eau Claire’s Admissions Office and with academic leaders at CVTC to clear new pathways for students.

Dr. Lynette Livingston, CVTC provost and vice president of academic & student affairs, says the expansion of articulation agreements is a powerful example of how higher education partners can work together to serve students and communities.

“By aligning our curriculum and advising, we’re ensuring that students who start at CVTC can transition smoothly into UWEC’s College of Business with the credits they’ve earned — an approach that truly supports student success,” she says, adding that this collaboration is just the beginning of what’s possible. “Our responsibility is to give students every opportunity to reach their goals. Through these agreements, we’re creating a clear and supported pathway to bachelor’s degree attainment while giving the appropriate value to the college credits and applied learning experience our students develop at CVTC.”

UW-Eau Claire and CVTC celebrated their partnership earlier this year at their annual Reaffirmation Day event, and the collaborative spirit that has long been a part of the articulation agreements between the schools is focused on how to better serve students.

“Partnerships like this show how technical colleges and universities can work together to build opportunities, support aspirations and strengthen our communities,” says Stephanie Esser, executive dean of business, arts and sciences at CVTC. “Whether students pursue management, marketing, accounting, entrepreneurship or another specialized business role, they’ll find a transfer pathway that values the applied learning experience they gained at CVTC and builds it into a bachelor’s degree at UW-Eau Claire.”

In addition to the new agreements, UW-Eau Claire will award six $2,000 scholarships to students transferring from CVTC into any College of Business major beginning in fall 2026. Isabel Walters, UW-Eau Claire’s director of admissions, says the scholarships will provide great opportunities for students.

“The new scholarships and expanded articulation agreements shows the strength of our institutional partnership with CVTC and our commitment to students,” Walters says. “This paves the way for our College of Business specifically to better serve those CVTC students who want to pursue their bachelor’s degrees as Blugolds.”

Walters notes all students transferring to the College of Business, regardless of the major they choose, will benefit from increased transferability of coursework and a more streamlined degree path.

Jepsen says the College of Business is continuing to look for ways to create opportunities for students by opening doors.

“Our Vision 2030 Plan details how we will identify new opportunities for transfer students and students who might not otherwise see a pathway to a bachelor’s degree at UW-Eau Claire,” Jepsen says. “The expanded collaboration with CVTC is going to open doors for students, and we are excited to watch these agreements and scholarships impact lives in the future.”