Graduation rates

Question:
What are the graduation rates for students obtaining a bachelor's degree?

Response:

The 6-year graduation rate for first-time, full-time undergraduate students who began their pursuit of a bachelor's degree at a 4-year degree-granting institution in fall 2008 was 60 percent. That is, 60 percent of first-time, full-time students who began seeking a bachelor's degree at a 4-year institution in fall 2008 completed the degree at that institution by 2014. The 6-year graduation rate was 58 percent at public institutions, 65 percent at private nonprofit institutions, and 27 percent at private for-profit institutions. The 6-year graduation rate was 57 percent for males and 62 percent for females; it was higher for females than for males at both public (61 vs. 55 percent) and private nonprofit institutions (68 vs. 62 percent). However, at private for-profit institutions, males had a higher 6-year graduation rate than females (28 vs. 25 percent).

Six-year graduation rates for first-time, full-time students who began seeking a bachelor's degree in fall 2008 varied according to institutional selectivity. In particular, 6-year graduation rates were highest at postsecondary degree-granting institutions that were the most selective (i.e., had the lowest admissions acceptance rates), and were lowest at institutions that were the least selective (i.e., had open admissions policies). For example, at 4-year institutions with open admissions policies, 36 percent of students completed a bachelor's degree within 6 years. At 4-year institutions where the acceptance rate was less than 25 percent of applicants, the 6-year graduation rate was 89 percent.

SOURCE: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics. (2016). The Condition of Education 2016 (NCES 2016-144), Undergraduate Retention and Graduation Rates.

Related Tables and Figures:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2016, Digest of Education Statistics 2015, Table 326.10. Grad. rate from first institution attended for first-time, full-time bachelor's degree-seeking students at 4-year postsec. institutions, by race/ethnicity, time to completion, sex, ctrl. of institution, and acceptance rate...1996 through 2008
  
• 2016, Digest of Education Statistics 2015, Table 326.20. Grad. rate from first institution attended within 150% of normal time for first-time, full-time degree/certificate-seeking students at 2-year postsec. institutions, by race/ethnicity, sex, and ctrl. of institution...2000 through 2011
  
• 2016, Digest of Education Statistics 2015, Table 326.30. Retention of first-time degree-seeking undergraduates at degree-granting postsecondary institutions, by attendance status, level and control of institution, and percentage of applications accepted: Selected years, 2006 to 2014
  

Other Resources:  (Listed by Release Date)

• 2016, Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS): BPS studies follow students when they first begin their postsecondary education.
  
• 2016, Graduation Rates for Selected Cohorts, 2006–11; Student Financial Aid in Postsecondary Institutions, Academic Year 2013–14; and Admissions in Postsecondary Institutions, Fall 2014: First Look (Provisional Data)
  
• 2016, Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS): IPEDS is a system of surveys designed to collect data from all primary providers of postsecondary education.