Nov 03, 2014 12:02 PM EST By J Baulkman, UniversityHerald Reporter

Flathead Valley Community College (FVCC) in Montana and the University of Lethbridge in Canada have teamed up to establish a new exchange program that provides local Flathead Valley residents the opportunity to complete transferrable college credits at the University of Lethbridge, school officials announced.

As a result of this collaboration, student can complete the first two years of a bachelor of science degree in computer science at FVCC and finish the remaining two years of the degree at the University of Lethbridge. Also, students at University of Lethbridge have the ability to complete Associate of Arts and Associate of Science two-year transfer degrees at FVCC.

In all, over 40 courses now are transferrable between the two institutions, creating an ease of course credit transferability that streamlines college degree completion.

"This partnership will allow Northwest Montanans the opportunity to gain a global perspective in a safe, friendly and like-minded community with a similar culture as ours," Gerd Reeb, FVCC international student coordinator, said in a statement. "This will help our students become globally-proficient individuals, and yet, they will still be close enough to the Flathead Valley to come home when they desire."

The new agreement allows for the two institutions to coordinate on program development, promote cooperation in academic activities and develop other mutually beneficial programs.

"This is an exciting opportunity for us to build bridges with other institutions that also put students first and care about their students' educational pathways," Dr. Craig Cooper, faculty of arts & science dean, said in a statement. "This agreement between the University of Lethbridge and Flathead Valley Community College opens doors for students from both institutions. We want to provide students as much flexibility as we can for their academic career, while still offering a top quality education close to home. This agreement fulfills all of those requirements."

Through the new program, University of Lethbridge students also are able to continue their studies in the United States through FVCC's partnerships with Montana University System (MUS) institutions. The articulation agreements between FVCC and The University of Montana, Montana State University and other MUS institutions afford U of L students the opportunity to earn credits at FVCC and seamlessly transfer those to other MUS institutions.

The University of Lethbridge is recognized as one of Canada's top-three undergraduate institutions (2014 Macleans University Rankings) and one of Canada's top-three undergraduate research universities (RE$EARCH Infosource, 2013). FVCC is the largest of three community colleges in Montana.

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