Who We Are

Reimagining undergraduate education to increase student success while decreasing student costs

Welcome! The College-in-3 Exchange is a collective of campuses hosting conversations to design undergraduate degree options that increase student success while decreasing student costs. This idea has moved from an experiment of a few campuses to an organized movement, serving as a catalyst for reimagining undergraduate education using evidence-based practice to inform a variety of designs that are not only shorter and less expensive, but better.

The College-in-3 Exchange is a national higher education innovation incubator – building on the accomplishments of early pilots to bring new designs to scale.

Sound interesting? Let’s talk!

Exchange Members

Leadership

Lori J. Carrell

Chancellor of the
University of Minnesota Rochester

Lori J. Carrell

Lori Carrell, chancellor of the University of Minnesota Rochester, focuses on transformative communication, learning innovation and well-being in higher education communities. Co-author, Communicate for a Change: Revitalizing Conversations for Higher Education.

Robert Zemsky (Bob)

Professor of Education at the University of Pennsylvania

Robert Zemsky

Bob Zemsky, long-time professor at Penn, has forcefully argued that colleges and universities need to be transformed from within. Co-author, Communicate for a Change: Revitalizing Conversations for Higher Education.

Madeleine Green

Independent Consultant and former Vice President at the American Council on Education

Madeleine Green

Madeleine Green, independent consultant and former Vice President at the American Council on Education. She has translated her experiences working with varied institutions on leadership development, change management and international education into many books and articles, including co-authoring “On Change” a series
of monographs.

Debbie Beauchene

Project Coordinator for College-in-3 and Former Educator

Debbie Beauchene

Debbie Beauchene, project coordinator for College-in-3 and former educator. A passionate advocate for transforming volunteer and community engagement.

Our Convener/Cluster Strategy

Media

Arnold Ventures Supports Project:

College-in-3 Movement Gains Momentum

For Immediate Release

Contact: Madeleine Green, Executive Director

Collegein3exchange@gmail.com

Arnold Ventures Supports Project As College-In-3 Movement Gains Momentum

December 5, 2024 – College-in-3 Exchange announced an investment from Arnold Ventures (AV) to support technical assistance for scaling of three-year Baccalaureate degrees. With AV’s support, the Exchange will work closely with member institutions that have designed, received regulatory approval for, and by fall 2025 will have launched three-year degree programs. The Exchange also will advise other member institutions that are working towards launching three-year programs with the goal of providing high quality college education at a reduced cost. The College-in-3 Exchange will collect data from member institutions, including learning outcomes, completion rates, and post-graduation placements. It will use these data to create a foundation for future research on the impact of three-year degree programs. The data will enable researchers to explore how these programs impact first-to-second-year retention and compare outcomes with traditional four-year degree programs.

Arnold Ventures is a philanthropy that supports research to understand the root causes of America’s most persistent and pressing problems, as well as evidence-based solutions to address them.  Today, half the nation’s four-year colleges and universities lose a quarter or more of their first-time enrollment in their freshman year, while completion rates continue to decline.

Participating colleges and universities have each designed new curricula, focusing on learning outcomes, high-impact practices, and a first year of study that lays the groundwork for a successful college career. Among the current 43 member institutions, several have launched three-year programs, while others are designing programs and/or seeking regulatory approval. Multiple institutional accreditors have created an approval pathway for three-year degrees with fewer than the traditional 120 credits; one does not require special approval. The College-in-3 Exchange expects to have 50 member institutions by the end of 2025 and 100 by the fall of 2026, which will represent a critical mass of institutions.

Lori Carrell and Bob Zemsky, who co-founded College-in-3 in 2022 with a few pilot institutions, are pleased to see growing national interest in a three-year degree. “We are grateful for the confidence Arnold Ventures has shown in our work, and we are excited for the opportunity to continue our scaling efforts and lay the groundwork for future research that can test the efficacy of these degrees.”

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About the College-in-3 Exchange The College-in-3 Exchange, founded by Robert Zemsky, Professor of Education at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, and Lori Carrell, Chancellor of the University of Minnesota Rochester,is now an incorporated not-for-profit enterprise.  Madeleine F Green, former vice president at the American Council on Education, serves as its Executive Director, Deborah Collins as Program Manager. The chair of the new Board of Directors is Wallace Boston, President Emeritus of the American Public University System (APUS). He is joined by board members Richard Ekman, President Emeritus of the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) and Mary Linda Armacost, President Emerita of Wilson College. The College-in-3 Exchange thanks the University of Minnesota for hosting the Exchange in its early years of operation

Universities considering three-year programs to combat cost of college, NBC News, August 2024

Opinion: Rethinking College: Times Have Changed, Wally Boston opinion piece, Texarkana Gazette, August 2024

Accelerated Baccalaureate Degrees, Ramaswamy, Sonny, and Selena Grace. The Beacon, Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities, July 2024

Opinion: The Answer to the Righteous Anger that Roils Campuses is Purposeful Change, Robert Zemsky opinion piece, Hechinger Report, June 2024

Universities try 3-year degrees to save students time, money, Stateline, May 2024

Can these colleges, accreditors breather new life into a bachelor’s degree?, University Business, May 2024

As students question the value of college, higher ed works to fix the ‘time trap’, Lumina Foundation, May 2024

As Some Question Higher Ed’s Value, Colleges Work to Fix the “Time Trap”, Forbes (PDF), May 2024

Colleges promote 3-year bachelor degrees as enrollment fall, revenues decline, Washington Times, April 2024

Traction for the three-year Bachelor’s Degree, Inside Higher Ed, April 2024

Do we need a shorter degree?, Jeff Selingo, April 2024

Race to the Finish – The rise of faster bachelor’s degrees raises the question: What is college for?, The Chronicle, March 2024

A bachelor’s in three years? Colleges just got the green light to get in the game. Boston Globe, March 2024

Want a bachelor’s degree in three years? University of Minnesota Morris is trying to make it easier, Star Tribune, February 2024

Three-year degree programs may be easier to implement than you think, University Business, February 2024 

University of Minnesota Rochester receives $200,000 gift, Post Bulletin, February 2024 

Has the Time for a Three Year Degree Finally Arrived?, Forbes, January 2024

Summer school may be back in vogue as college students work toward early graduation, USA Today, August 2023

Mayo Clinic provides internships, mentoring for undergrads on accelerated career pathway, Mayo Clinic News Network, August 2023

In Defense of a Real Three-Year Degree, Inside Higher Ed, May 2023

Yes, a College Degree Is Still Worth It; College graduates continue to command higher wages, but to combat falling enrollment, schools need to emphasize skills over credentials, Wall Street Journal, May 2023

College in 3: Getting your college degree in 3 years, Taming the High Cost of College, May 2023

The Push for a 3-Year Bachelor’s Degree, Inside Higher Ed, April 2023

Colleges push 3-year degrees as enrollments fall, costs rise, The Washington Times, April 2023

Q&A: How a U of M Rochester program is turning into a nationwide model toward faster degrees, Minnesota Star Tribune, April 2023

As colleges experiment with 3-year degrees, U of M Rochester leads the charge, KSTP News, July 2022

Momentum builds behind a way to lower the cost of college: A degree in three years, The Hechinger Report, April 2022

U of M Rochester chief winning supporters for three-year college plan, Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal, April 2022

Momentum builds behind a three-year degree to lower college costs, Washington Post, April 2022

A New Push to Create a 3-Year Degree Option, Inside Higher Ed, November 2021

“College in 3” project teams up with 13 institutions to explore three-year degree options, Penn State GSE News, November 2021

3-Year college degree programs, what to know, US News and World Report, November 2020

Let’s Talk

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