The graduation rate for four-year postsecondary institutions in the United States climbed over 10 percentage points between 1996 and 2014, from 34% to 47%, for first-time, full-time students seeking bachelor’s degrees. It climbed 5 percentage points between 2011 and 2014 alone. (Note: The National Center for Education Statistics data excludes some intervening years in the period between 1996 and 2014.)
Graduation rates vary by institution type, gender, race, and other characteristics like college selectiveness.
Breaking down graduation rates by institution type for four-year institutions, students graduate at the highest rate from nonprofit institutions and the lowest rate from for-profit institutions.
- The graduation rate from public four-year institutions climbed steadily between 2010 and 2014 from 36% to 42%.
- The graduation rate from nonprofit four-year institutions also increased, though not as dramatically. Between 2010 and 2014, it rose from 54% to 57%.
- The graduation rate fluctuated for for-profit four-year institutions, rising between 2002 and 2006 from 15% to 23%, then falling back to 14% in 2009. It later recovered to 23% in 2014.
Students identifying as female consistently graduated at a higher rate than students identifying as male between 1996 and 2014.
- Students identifying as female graduated from four-year institutions within 4 years at a rate 9.4 percentage points higher than male-identifying students on average between 1996 and 2014, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
- Among those attending two-year institutions, students identifying as female graduated within 150% of the normal time at a rate 4.9 percentage points higher than male-identifying students on average between 1996 and 2014.
- In 2014, the graduation rate for female students from four-year institutions was 51.3%, while the graduation rate for male students was 41%.
According to a survey by Pew Research Center in 2021, men and women who do not complete a four-year degree report different reasons for doing so.
Graduation rates also differ by students’ race.
- Asian/Pacific Islander students graduated from four-year institutions within four years at the highest rate of any racial group reported by the National Center for Education Statistics between 1996 and 2014, except in 2007 when students of two or more races graduated at the highest rate. (Note: The National Center for Education Statistics data is missing the graduation rate for students of two or more races prior to 2005.)
- Black and American Indian/Alaska Native students graduated from four-year institutions within four years at the lowest rates of the racial groups reported.
- Similar trends hold for students graduating from two-year institutions within 150% of the normal time.
According to the Hechinger Report, some reasons for the graduation rate gap between Black and white students are financial pressure, inadequate high school preparation, and feeling isolated.
In addition to graduation rate, retention rate is a useful statistic to examine. Nonprofit institutions had the highest retention rate of first-time degree-seeking undergraduates while for-profit institutions had the lowest between 1996 and 2014.
References
- Table 326.10 Graduation rate from first institution attended for first-time, full-time bachelor’s degree-seeking students at 4-year postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity, time to completion, sex, control of institution, and percentage of applications accepted: Selected cohort entry years, 1996 through 2014. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). October 2021.
- Table 326.20 Graduation rate from first institution attended within 150 percent of normal time for first-time, full-time degree/certificate-seeking students at 2-year postsecondary institutions, by race/ethnicity, sex, and control of institution: Selected cohort entry years, 2000 through 2017. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). October 2021.
- 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 through 2020. National Center for Education Statistics (NCES). November 2021.
- What’s behind the growing gap between men and women in college completion? Pew Research Center. November 8, 2021.
- Why white students are 250% more likely to graduate than Black students at public universities. The Hechinger Report. October 10, 2021.
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