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Retention and Graduation Rates

Matriculating into a college is one thing, returning your sophomore year in good standing and then successfully pushing through to a diploma is quite another.

Nationwide, the average retention rate (students who return for sophomore year) is 78%. Graduation rates are measured by: 1) the percentage of students that complete their degree; and 2) how long it takes to do so. Our list of retention and graduation rates at roughly 330 of the nation’s top colleges and universities will show you each institution’s retention rate as well as what percentage of their student body graduates in four, five, and six years. A high retention and four-year graduation rate are indicators of quality undergraduate education.

*Data was collected from each institution’s Common Data Set for 2023-24. Graduation rates were collected from the Fall 2017 cohort and retention rates measured students who enrolled in Fall 2022 and returned for Fall 2023.

Table updated November 2024

InstitutionFreshman Retention Rate4-Year Graduation Rate6-Year Graduation Rate
138600Agnes Scott College80%61%71%
210669Allegheny College85%62%67%
131159American UniversityAU87%73%78%
164465Amherst College97%72%93%
197869Appalachian State UniversityApp State85%58%73%
104151Arizona State UniversityASU85%55%69%
100858Auburn University93%57%79%
164580Babson College94%88%92%
189088Bard College89%61%72%
189097Barnard College97%77%93%
160977Bates College94%85%91%
223232Baylor University91%70%80%
238333Beloit College86%57%67%
230816Bennington College85%51%67%
164739Bentley University93%79%88%
156295Berea College82%51%62%
164748Berklee College of Music85%50%67%
196079Binghamton University89%77%84%
142115Boise State University78%40%59%
164924Boston CollegeBC93%88%91%
164988Boston UniversityBU95%83%90%
161004Bowdoin College98%82%96%
165015Brandeis University90%78%86%
230038Brigham Young University-ProvoBYU89%28%82%
217156Brown University99%80%96%
217165Bryant University87%78%81%
211273Bryn Mawr College90%75%86%
211291Bucknell University96%82%86%
150163Butler University88%74%80%
110404California Institute of TechnologyCaltech98%79%93%
111081California Institute of the Arts86%43%64%
110422California Polytechnic State University-San Luis ObispoCal Poly95%62%86%
110529California State Polytechnic University-Pomona88%29%67%
110556California State University-Fresno83%25%55%
110565California State University-Fullerton85%36%69%
110583California State University-Long Beach85%38%70%
110592California State University-Los Angeles73%21%52%
173258Carleton College96%83%91%
211440Carnegie Mellon UniversityCMU97%79%93%
201645Case Western Reserve University92%72%87%
131283Catholic University of America88%75%81%
156408Centre College89%81%85%
230852Champlain College78%53%63%
111948Chapman University90%71%80%
112260Claremont McKenna CollegeCMC96%75%95%
165334Clark University88%72%77%
190044Clarkson University86%65%76%
217882Clemson University93%68%88%
161086Colby College90%82%90%
190099Colgate University93%84%90%
217819College of Charleston82%56%65%
160959College of the Atlantic80%52%69%
166124College of the Holy Cross93%88%90%
231624College of William and MaryW&M95%86%91%
126678Colorado CollegeCC95%77%86%
126775Colorado School of Mines93%66%79%
126818Colorado State UniversityCSU85%47%67%
190150Columbia University in the City of New York97%80%95%
128902Connecticut College87%76%84%
190372Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art93%55%80%
153162Cornell College74%67%72%
190415Cornell University98%87%95%
181002Creighton University92%74%80%
190512CUNY Bernard M Baruch College88%56%72%
190594CUNY Hunter College80%40%61%
182670Dartmouth College98%84%96%
198385Davidson College95%89%92%
202523Denison University89%72%80%
144740DePaul University87%56%70%
150400DePauw University89%73%80%
212009Dickinson College89%73%83%
153269Drake University84%68%77%
184348Drew University88%67%72%
212054Drexel University90%31%77%
198419Duke University98%88%96%
212106Duquesne University86%67%75%
150455Earlham College80%61%68%
198464East Carolina UniversityECU82%43%62%
133492Eckerd College78%58%68%
212197Elizabethtown College84%73%77%
198516Elon University90%78%83%
133553Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University82%39%68%
165662Emerson College87%73%79%
165671Emmanuel College79%59%66%
139658Emory University96%83%92%
129242Fairfield University90%81%84%
191126Fashion Institute of TechnologyFIT89%Not ReportedNot Reported
133669Florida Atlantic UniversityFAU84%50%64%
133881Florida Institute of Technology77%48%65%
133951Florida International UniversityFIU92%59%74%
134079Florida Southern College79%64%69%
134097Florida State UniversityFSU96%73%83%
191241Fordham University88%76%80%
212577Franklin and Marshall CollegeF&M85%80%86%
441982Franklin W Olin College of Engineering99%73%83%
218070Furman University91%74%81%
232186George Mason UniversityGMU87%49%71%
131469George Washington UniversityGWU92%79%85%
131496Georgetown University97%87%94%
139861Georgia College & State University80%50%62%
139755Georgia Institute of TechnologyGeorgia Tech98%57%92%
139940Georgia State University76%34%54%
212674Gettysburg College90%74%83%
235316Gonzaga University94%78%87%
162654Goucher College77%52%60%
153384Grinnell College93%74%87%
212805Grove City College88%75%80%
173647Gustavus Adolphus College84%63%76%
191515Hamilton College96%81%91%
166018Hampshire College68%51%57%
150756Hanover College78%67%69%
166027Harvard University99%66%98%
115409Harvey Mudd CollegeHMC97%78%94%
212911Haverford College94%82%89%
107080Hendrix College78%62%69%
170286Hillsdale College96%72%85%
191630Hobart William Smith Colleges89%65%73%
191649Hofstra University83%57%67%
170301Hope College90%73%82%
131520Howard UniversityHU90%60%69%
145725Illinois Institute of TechnologyIIT87%35%72%
145646Illinois Wesleyan University82%78%83%
151351Indiana University-BloomingtonIUB91%71%81%
153603Iowa State University88%54%75%
191968Ithaca College83%68%74%
232423James Madison UniversityJMU90%78%81%
162928Johns Hopkins UniversityJHU98%87%95%
213251Juniata College77%64%69%
170532Kalamazoo College87%72%82%
155399Kansas State University87%47%70%
203535Kenyon College93%74%85%
169983Kettering University93%16%71%
146427Knox College80%52%68%
213385Lafayette College92%80%88%
146481Lake Forest College86%64%70%
239017Lawrence University87%59%76%
192323Le Moyne College84%64%71%
213543Lehigh University93%81%89%
209056Lewis & Clark College82%62%71%
159391Louisiana State UniversityLSU84%49%71%
117946Loyola Marymount UniversityLMU88%71%80%
146719Loyola University ChicagoLUC84%69%76%
163046Loyola University Maryland86%76%80%
173902Macalester College95%82%90%
161299Maine Maritime Academy85%46%62%
192819Marist College89%72%80%
239105Marquette University91%69%83%
166683Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMIT99%82%96%
140447Mercer University83%64%73%
204024Miami University-Oxford90%73%82%
171100Michigan State UniversityMSU91%65%83%
171128Michigan Technological University88%34%69%
230959Middlebury College94%71%93%
239318Milwaukee School of EngineeringMSOE83%50%72%
176080Mississippi State University83%43%63%
178411Missouri University of Science and TechnologyMUST88%27%64%
180461Montana State University78%36%57%
140553Morehouse College80%36%53%
166939Mount Holyoke CollegeMHC90%74%85%
214175Muhlenberg College89%70%80%
262129New College of Florida65%55%62%
185828New Jersey Institute of TechnologyNJIT91%49%72%
187967New Mexico Institute of Mining and TechnologyNMIT77%32%56%
193900New York UniversityNYU96%76%89%
199193North Carolina State UniversityNC State93%68%85%
167358Northeastern University97%0%90%
147767Northwestern University97%88%96%
204501Oberlin College89%62%79%
120254Occidental CollegeOxy87%72%85%
204796Ohio State UniversityOSU94%71%88%
204857Ohio UniversityOU81%53%66%
204909Ohio Wesleyan University84%55%62%
209542Oregon State UniversityOSU88%47%71%
214777Pennsylvania State UniversityPSU; Penn State92%70%86%
121150Pepperdine University86%75%85%
121257Pitzer College94%60%83%
121345Pomona College96%71%93%
194578Pratt Institute-Main89%49%73%
186131Princeton University97%80%97%
217402Providence College91%86%88%
243780Purdue University-Main Campus92%65%84%
130226Quinnipiac University87%73%77%
186201Ramapo College of New Jersey87%59%72%
209922Reed College86%62%76%
194824Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteRPI89%71%83%
217493Rhode Island School of DesignRISD95%58%88%
221351Rhodes College91%77%82%
227757Rice University98%89%96%
195003Rochester Institute of TechnologyRIT88%28%73%
136950Rollins College83%70%77%
152318Rose-Hulman Institute of TechnologyRHIT91%68%82%
184782Rowan University82%51%68%
186371Rutgers University-Camden82%47%66%
186380Rutgers University-New BrunswickRU93%71%85%
186399Rutgers University-Newark84%42%68%
183239Saint Anselm College90%78%83%
179159Saint Louis UniversitySLU89%73%80%
231059Saint Michael's College84%63%69%
122409San Diego State UniversitySDSU90%57%78%
122755San Jose State UniversitySJSU86%30%64%
122931Santa Clara UniversitySCU94%83%88%
195304Sarah Lawrence CollegeSLC84%59%70%
123165Scripps College88%68%87%
236595Seattle University85%66%73%
195474Siena College84%72%76%
167783Simmons University82%67%71%
195526Skidmore College89%75%82%
167835Smith College93%75%90%
399911Soka University of America92%79%87%
228246Southern Methodist UniversitySMU90%76%83%
228343Southwestern University83%61%69%
141060Spelman College94%68%76%
195216St. Lawrence UniversitySLU86%71%80%
174844St. Olaf College91%79%84%
163976St. John's College (MD)79%50%67%
245652St. John's College (NM)74%39%60%
163912St. Mary's College of Maryland81%58%68%
243744Stanford University98%58%93%
196176State University of New York at New Paltz87%56%69%
137546Stetson University73%57%63%
186867Stevens Institute of Technology94%69%90%
167996Stonehill College83%75%81%
196097Stony Brook University89%66%78%
196219SUNY at Purchase College79%51%62%
196167SUNY College at Geneseo84%10%72%
196103SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry80%59%68%
216287Swarthmore College97%76%94%
196413Syracuse University91%71%81%
216339Temple University84%57%75%
228723Texas A&M University-College Station94%61%84%
228875Texas Christian UniversityTCU94%74%86%
229115Texas Tech University85%44%64%
187134The College of New JerseyTCNJ89%76%85%
206589The College of Wooster81%66%74%
193654The New School75%52%71%
100751The University of Alabama86%56%74%
180489The University of Montana76%31%45%
137847The University of Tampa81%52%62%
221759The University of Tennessee-KnoxvilleUTK91%56%73%
228778The University of Texas at AustinUT Austin96%73%88%
228787The University of Texas at DallasUTD; UT Dallas88%59%75%
221519The University of the South89%74%82%
124292Thomas Aquinas College93%80%82%
216366Thomas Jefferson University82%54%68%
164076Towson University83%45%68%
130590Trinity College91%78%83%
229267Trinity University92%73%82%
178615Truman State University84%57%68%
168148Tufts University96%86%93%
160755Tulane University of Louisiana94%82%89%
196866Union College89%75%85%
128328United States Air Force AcademyUSAFA96%86%88%
130624United States Coast Guard AcademyUSCGA97%83%88%
197027United States Merchant Marine Academy94%73%81%
197036United States Military AcademyUSMA95%81%85%
164155United States Naval Academy97%90%92%
196088University at Buffalo85%59%73%
100663University of Alabama at BirminghamUAB82%43%62%
104179University of ArizonaUA88%51%66%
106397University of Arkansas86%55%70%
110635University of California-BerkeleyUCB: UC Berkeley97%81%93%
110644University of California-DavisUCD; UC Davis93%69%85%
110653University of California-IrvineUCI; UC Irvine94%73%86%
110662University of California-Los AngelesUCLA97%86%93%
445188University of California-MercedUC Merced83%49%69%
110671University of California-RiversideUCR; UC Riverside88%65%77%
110680University of California-San DiegoUCSD; UC San Diego94%75%88%
110705University of California-Santa BarbaraUCSB; UC Santa Barbara92%73%86%
110714University of California-Santa CruzUCSC; UC Santa Cruz90%61%74%
132903University of Central FloridaUCF92%50%75%
144050University of ChicagoUChicago99%86%95%
201885University of Cincinnati-Main Campus86%40%72%
126614University of Colorado-Boulder89%58%75%
129020University of ConnecticutUConn91%76%84%
224323University of Dallas80%62%68%
130943University of DelawareUD91%72%83%
127060University of DenverUD88%69%78%
134130University of FloridaUF97%76%91%
139959University of GeorgiaUGA95%72%88%
225511University of Houston87%45%65%
142285University of Idaho75%41%60%
145600University of Illinois at ChicagoUIC78%40%60%
145637University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUIUC94%73%85%
153658University of Iowa89%57%73%
155317University of KansasKU85%54%69%
157085University of KentuckyUK87%54%70%
157289University of Louisville81%43%61%
161253University of Maine77%41%57%
232681University of Mary Washington82%58%67%
163268University of Maryland-Baltimore CountyUMBC87%48%70%
163286University of Maryland-College ParkUMD96%76%88%
166629University of Massachusetts-AmherstUMass Amherst91%76%83%
166638University of Massachusetts-BostonUMass Boston73%31%51%
166513University of Massachusetts-LowellUMass Lowell82%48%70%
135726University of MiamiUM92%73%84%
170976University of MichiganUMich98%82%93%
174233University of Minnesota-Duluth81%46%64%
174251University of Minnesota-Morris72%47%62%
174066University of Minnesota-Twin CitiesUMN91%74%85%
176017University of MississippiOle Miss88%55%68%
178396University of Missouri-ColumbiaMizzou91%56%76%
181464University of Nebraska-LincolnUNL85%49%66%
182281University of Nevada-Las VegasUNLV78%25%50%
182290University of Nevada-RenoUNR80%42%63%
183044University of New HampshireUNH86%69%77%
199111University of North Carolina at AshevilleUNC Asheville73%39%56%
199120University of North Carolina at Chapel HillUNC Chapel Hill97%86%92%
199139University of North Carolina at CharlotteUNCC; UNC Charlotte84%50%68%
199148University of North Carolina at GreensboroUNCG; UNC Greensboro76%40%58%
199218University of North Carolina-WilmingtonUNC Wilmington85%56%71%
152080University of Notre DameUND98%93%96%
207500University of OklahomaOU89%56%75%
209551University of Oregon85%59%71%
215062University of PennsylvaniaUPenn98%88%97%
215293University of Pittsburgh92%71%84%
209825University of Portland83%69%80%
236328University of Puget Sound80%60%68%
121691University of Redlands81%61%71%
217484University of Rhode IslandURI84%57%70%
233374University of Richmond93%82%88%
195030University of Rochester93%77%84%
122436University of San DiegoUSD90%72%82%
122612University of San FranciscoUSF80%64%71%
215929University of Scranton87%76%81%
218663University of South CarolinaUSC91%69%78%
137351University of South FloridaUSF92%63%75%
123961University of Southern CaliforniaUSC96%77%92%
174914University of St. Thomas (MN)87%69%77%
230764University of Utah85%34%64%
231174University of VermontUVM88%68%78%
234076University of VirginiaUVA98%92%95%
377555University of Washington-Bothell Campus86%50%68%
236948University of Washington-SeattleUW95%71%84%
240444University of Wisconsin-MadisonUW-Madison95%73%89%
216524Ursinus College82%69%77%
221999Vanderbilt UniversityVandy96%89%93%
197133Vassar College94%81%89%
216597Villanova University96%90%92%
234030Virginia Commonwealth UniversityVCU86%47%65%
233921Virginia TechVirginia Tech92%69%86%
152673Wabash College86%71%77%
199847Wake Forest University95%87%91%
234207Washington and Lee UniversityW&L; WLU95%92%95%
164216Washington College87%66%74%
236939Washington State UniversityWSU80%43%62%
179867Washington University in St. LouisWashU96%87%94%
168218Wellesley College96%80%91%
168227Wentworth Institute of Technology86%41%69%
130697Wesleyan University95%81%92%
216764West Chester University of Pennsylvania84%53%70%
238032West Virginia UniversityWVU81%43%60%
125727Westmont College86%68%70%
149781Wheaton College (IL)90%82%87%
168281Wheaton College (MA)81%69%76%
237057Whitman College89%68%86%
125763Whittier College52%55%63%
210401Willamette University83%62%74%
168342Williams College97%74%97%
218973Wofford College90%77%81%
168421Worcester Polytechnic InstituteWPI94%83%88%
130794Yale University99%66%96%
197708Yeshiva UniversityYU93%79%85%

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