La Verne opens arms to Marymount transfers

The 500 students who are studying for their undergraduate and master’s educations at Marymount California University in Rancho Palos Verdes are looking for another place to finish their degrees once the private college closes for good this fall. The University of La Verne is stepping in to help.

The private college of about 6,000 students near Pomona announced this week a partnership that will allow Marymount bachelor’s and master’s of business administration students to smoothly transfer to La Verne and complete their degrees on time — with admission, financial and housing benefits.

Marymount University announced last month that it will close permanently Aug. 31.

A merger between Marymount California and Saint Leo University, a larger Catholic campus in central Florida, could have kept the school open but was terminated last month.

There’s no limit on how many of the 500 potential transfer students La Verne could take, spokesman Rod Leveque said Monday. Anyone who’s in good academic standing and meets the eligibility requirements can get in, he said.

“The University of La Verne wants to make sure that every qualified Marymount California student can continue to make uninterrupted progress toward earning their degree,” said Mary Aguayo, vice president for enrollment management at La Verne, in a news release.

University of La Verne offers more than 50 majors, and students can create their own degree paths.

Transfer students in good standing will be guaranteed admission and an expedited application process, according to a news release. La Verne will waive the application fee, letter of recommendation and personal statement or application essay.

Students will keep all credits they’ve completed at Marymount California and stay on track to graduate from La Verne on their original timelines.

La Verne also will honor Marymount students existing scholarship awards, picking up where the school left off.

Transfers who apply for housing before June 15 will be guaranteed a spot in La Verne’s residence halls, the release adds. The school will offer housing to dorm applicants thereafter as available.

The agreement also guarantees admission and other benefits for incoming freshmen, and MBA and transfer students who had not yet begun at Marymount, per the release.

“We are so grateful for the University of La Verne for stepping up to provide such a pathway for our students — they are an ideal alternative,” Marymount President Brian Marcotte said in the release.

For more information, go to univ.lv/marymountcalifornia.