Completing College: A National View of Student Completion Rates--Fall 2011 Cohort. (Signature Report No. 14)

• Published in: National Student Clearinghouse
• Main Authors: Shapiro, Doug, Dundar, Afet, Huie, Faye, Wakhungu, Phoebe Khasiala, Yuan, Xin, Nathan, Angel, Bhimdiwala, Ayesha
• Format: Report
• Language: English
• Published: National Student Clearinghouse 01.12.2017
• Subjects: Academic Degrees; Age Differences; Educational Certificates; Enrollment Trends; Ethnicity; Full Time Students; Gender Differences; Graduation Rate; Higher Education; Institutional Characteristics; Part Time Students; Postsecondary Education; Private Colleges; Proprietary Schools; Public Colleges; Racial Differences; Student Records; Two Year Colleges

This Signature Report examines the rate of completion of postsecondary certificates and degrees by first-time-in-college degree-seeking students who initially enrolled in two- and four-year colleges and universities (public, private nonprofit, or private for-profit) nationwide in fall 2011. It tracks their enrollment behaviors and outcomes for six years, through spring 2017. Six-year outcomes provided in this report include completions at students' starting institutions, completions at transfer institutions, and continued enrollment (for noncompleters) through the end of the study period. While the report emphasizes students' first completions, it also examines subsequent completions at four-year institutions for students whose first credential was awarded by a two-year institution. Six-year postsecondary outcomes are presented by students' age at first entry into college, gender, race and ethnicity and the level and control of the institution where they first enrolled. Results are also presented for students in three categories of enrollment intensity: (1) exclusively full-time enrollment, (2) exclusively part-time enrollment, and (3) enrollments showing both full- and part-time terms during the six years examined (mixed enrollment).The overall national six-year completion rate for the fall 2011 cohort was 56.9 percent, an increase of 2.1 percentage points from the fall 2010 cohort. This higher completion rate represents about 48,000 more graduates than the fall 2010 cohort, even with a slightly smaller cohort size. This report also explores eight-year postsecondary outcomes for students in the fall 2009 entering cohort. Highlights and a discussion of the major findings of the report, including how they compare to the outcomes for the fall 2010 cohort, are also provided.