Abstract: Three decades of research on four-year college students has drawn favorable conclusions about the importance of student involvement in academic and extracurricular activities. Student involvement may also influence community college transfer student preparation, but it is unknown whether existing research results can be generalized to this population. Therefore, this study addresses the central question: Is there a relationship between student involvement and the transfer readiness of community college students? This mixed methods study examines the link between various types of student involvement and different levels of transfer readiness while accounting for demographic and pre-collegiate characteristics of students at three California community colleges. The quantitative component involved an in-class questionnaire completed by (N=1,941) students in 94 IGETC courses at three institutions. The survey focused on student background characteristics, high school involvement measures, bridge characteristics between high school and college, and student experiences in college. Regression analyses revealed that student involvement level varies by several factors including race, gender, age and hours per week working on- or off-campus. Also, student characteristics and involvement levels relate to transfer preparation, with the most relevant predictors for transfer readiness being a student's age, likelihood of attending college full-time, following a formal transfer plan, high school academic participation, and extracurricular involvement in college. The qualitative data come from nine focus groups conducted to ascertain students' beliefs and motivations that contribute to their involvement and transfer readiness. First, the researchers identified four involvement predisposition themes and six environmental themes. The common thread connecting these themes was the importance of interpersonal involvement. Whether students interacted with peers or faculty; participated in extracurricular activities, study groups, or campus employment and service; were involved in or out of the classroom; they perceived that engaging with others was an important contributor to transfer readiness. The combined data provide overarching themes that may supply the foundation for future research, and guide the design and implementation of policy, program, and service improvements at community colleges.