The 2021 update shows that of those who began postsecondary education at a community college in fall 2014, lower-income students were half as likely as their higher-income peers to have transferred to a four-year institution (24% vs. 40%) and to have attained a bachelor’s degree (10% vs. 21%) within six years of first entry.
This sixth annual report on national college completion rates offers a look at the six-year outcomes for students who began postsecondary education in fall 2011. It looks at the various pathways students took toward degree completion, as well as the completion rates through June 2017 for the different student types who followed each pathway.
In the current term (fall 2018) overall postsecondary enrollments decreased 1.7 percent from the previous fall.
Our sixth annual report provides the most updated data on high school graduates’ college access, persistence, and completion outcomes. The report provides the most relevant benchmarks for evaluating and monitoring progress in assisting students to make the transition from high school to college.
This third report on transfer and mobility examines multiple transfer pathways for the cohort of students who started postsecondary education in fall 2011. It analyzes student enrollment patterns across different institutions and across state boundaries, including — for the first time — disaggregations by race and ethnicity.
Of all students who started college in fall 2016, 73.9 percent persisted at any U.S. institution in fall 2017, while 61.6 percent were retained at their starting institution.
In the current term (spring 2018) overall postsecondary enrollments decreased 1.3 percent from the previous spring.
By the end of year four, 42.1 percent of individuals who began college in fall 2011 had completed a postsecondary credential, while 23.5 percent were no longer enrolled. By the end of year six, 63.1 percent had graduated, while 27.4 percent had left college without earning a credential.
In the state supplement to our sixth annual report on national college completion rates, we take a state-by-state look at the six-year outcomes for students who began postsecondary education in fall 2011.
According to the research, the national completion rate for the fall 2011 cohort who started in four-year public institutions was 64.7 percent. Meanwhile, in 24 states, the completion rate was higher than this national average for four-year public institutions.
