Students who transfer from a community college to a four-year university have a singular path to travel. Researchers have studied this population for several decades. This research dissertation has built on the findings of these pioneers in the field of transfer student persistence. As a result of this study, two additional pieces of the transfer process have fallen into place. Transfer students are motivated by negative experiences as well as positive experiences. Transfer students who persist to graduation possess the capacity to make crucial adjustments which enable them to overcome numerous obstacles which stand in their way.