One of the benefits of attending community college is that it offers an affordable path to a four-year degree. But that’s not the reality for many students. Some highly selective four-year colleges have policies that allow them to determine which credits count after a student enrolls. But others, like the University of Chicago, reject all credits from two-year institutions.

It’s a practice that costs students thousands of dollars per credit and prevents them from graduating on time and with less debt. Meanwhile, colleges profit off of their enrollment, student advocates say.

The number of people who attended some college but never earned a credential is growing across the country, according to the latest “Some College, No Credential” report from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

The new progress report says that many of these students struggled to enroll and stay enrolled because of challenges posed by the pandemic, high college prices, and the lure of decent-paying jobs that don’t necessarily require a certificate or degree in the current labor market.

Photo: Karen Ducey/The Seattle Times

Terrica Purvis is in her first year of study for an associate degree in nursing at Everett Community College. The 27-year-old is also one of more than 6,000 Washington community and technical college students enrolled in the state’s Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training (I-BEST) program.

The effort helps students master academic fundamentals while training for a career. For Purvis and many others, the program is making all the difference in their college journey.