# Ep. 96 - Troy Holaday: 52,000 Degrees Were Already Earned. They Just Hadn't Been Found.

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Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-signal-7024065/ep-96-troy-holaday-52-000-degrees-were-already-earned-they-just-hadn-t-been-found.md
Podcast: [The Signal](https://stenobird.com/podcast/the-signal-7024065)
Published: 2026-07-17T11:00:00+00:00
Episode link: https://edtechconnect.castos.com/episodes/troy-holaday-52000-degrees-were-already-earned-they-just-hadnt-been-found
Audio file: https://episodes.castos.com/66cf7b74d67cb0-47099354/2501490/c1e-995mgt2mzx0hd0dn9-pknpm1n9sdz3-ayfhpr.mp3
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Duration seconds: 2049

## Resource

Transfer credit is one of higher ed's most persistent headaches. Students lose credits, take longer to graduate, and navigate a labyrinth of institutional policies that often feel designed to frustrate rather than help. But according to Troy Holaday, president of CollegeSource, the narrative that "transfer is broken" is outdated—and it's getting in the way of real progress. In this episode, host Jeff Dillon sits down with Troy, a former academic advisor and professor who spent 16 years inside Ball State University before leading one of the most widely used transfer technology platforms in the country. Troy brings a rare perspective: he's been the advisor sitting across from students, the faculty member designing curriculum, and the technologist building systems to make transfer work. Troy challenges the conventional wisdom that transfer is a disaster, pointing to recent data showing that most students now have their credits evaluated automatically and are largely satisfied with the process. He argues that the real problem isn't broken systems—it's that we're not telling the right stories. Instead of fixating on horror stories, we should be studying and scaling best practices. The conversation covers CollegeSource's suite of products and how they work together to mirror the transfer journey. Troy also shares the story of Louisiana's statewide expansion of TES across all public institutions, and the remarkable "degree discovery" work that has helped institutions award more than 200,000 degrees to students who had stopped out. For any enrollment leader, registrar, advisor, or policymaker trying to make transfer work better, this episode offers a grounded, evidence-informed perspective on what's already working—and where technology can actually move the needle. Key Takeawa…

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## Transcript

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