The FUSE program began about a year and a half ago, making the transition from Hillsborough Community College to the University of South Florida more seamless. Students just starting HCC and those not admitted into USF have the opportunity to join. FUSE students who fulfill program requirements are going to be automatically admitted into their select programs of study instead of just being admitted into USF, which is a general articulation agreement that exists with all institutions in the state of Florida.

To be admitted into FUSE, students must not have more than 12 credits of college-level coursework, must be currently enrolled in an A.A degree at HCC and plan on transferring to one of 17 selected majors. In order to complete the program, students need to maintain a 2.0 GPA, graduate HCC within three years, and fulfill their degree pathways requirements.

Graduation pathways given to FUSE students supply a more specific guideline for A.A degree completion and the prerequisites needed to transfer into their selected major. FUSE advisors provide a unique plan developed in consultation with students, which ensures that transfer students have the courses they need without incurring extra debt. FUSE students are given a specially designed orientation at the commencement of the program. They also get to utilize USF facilities and attend events.

“We work very closely with the students. We make sure that students have an idea from the moment they start to the moment they finish what classes they need to take and when they should take them,” says Maribel Garrett, Assistant Dean of Student Services and FUSE advisor at the Ybor City campus.

“We maintain a very close communication to USF. We actually have a young lady from USF that is here on campus two or three times a semester. She is the person that students can talk to about the program,” says Garrett.

That is what Garrett considers the more serious side of the program. The fun side, as she calls it, is that students in the program can participate in events at USF. “USF is undefeated in football right now. Students can attend those games for free like any USF student. They can sit in the student section and be a part of bull country. It is true for all sports, and it’s true for some events like homecoming. They could attend the parade and other events that they had planned for the community,” says Garrett.

Get started by contacting a FUSE advisor at any of the HCC campus locations. For more information visit www.hccfl.edu/fuse