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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 70%. 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 360 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 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 2024-25. Graduation rates were collected from the Fall 2018 cohort and retention rates measured students who enrolled in Fall 2023 and returned for Fall 2024. An asterisk (*) denotes that 2024 data was unavailable, and the most recent data available is provided instead. 

Table updated November 2025

InstitutionFreshman Retention Rate4-Year Graduation Rate6-Year Graduation Rate
138600Agnes Scott College81%64%71%
210669Allegheny College78%67%73%
131159American UniversityAU88%68%75%
164465Amherst College97%75%93%
197869Appalachian State UniversityApp State85%59%74%
104151Arizona State UniversityASU86%56%67%
100858Auburn University93%60%81%
164580Babson College95%84%93%
189088Bard College85%*57%*73%*
189097Barnard College97%81%93%
160977Bates College93%82%92%
223232Baylor University90%68%81%
238333Beloit College84%55%71%
230816Bennington College84%61%69%
164739Bentley University92%81%88%
156295Berea College83%36%62%
164748Berklee College of Music85%50%68%
196079Binghamton University90%77%83%
142115Boise State University78%41%58%
164924Boston CollegeBC95%86%91%
164988Boston UniversityBU95%81%89%
161004Bowdoin College97%72%95%
165015Brandeis University90%78%87%
230038Brigham Young University-ProvoBYU90%27%80%
217156Brown University99%77%96%
217165Bryant University88%77%82%
211273Bryn Mawr College90%73%85%
211291Bucknell University93%82%87%
150163Butler University88%72%80%
110404California Institute of TechnologyCaltech98%77%94%
111081California Institute of the Arts86%*43%*64%*
110422California Polytechnic State University-San Luis ObispoCal Poly95%62%86%
110529California State Polytechnic University-Pomona88%35%68%
110556California State University-Fresno78%28%56%
110565California State University-Fullerton85%39%70%
110583California State University-Long Beach86%38%72%
110592California State University-Los Angeles73%25%52%
173258Carleton College96%82%91%
211440Carnegie Mellon UniversityCMU97%81%93%
201645Case Western Reserve University93%73%86%
131283Catholic University of America87%73%78%
156408Centre College89%76%85%
230852Champlain College76%56%65%
111948Chapman University91%71%82%
112260Claremont McKenna CollegeCMC97%75%93%
165334Clark University87%70%77%
190044Clarkson University83%62%75%
217882Clemson University93%68%86%
161086Colby College93%75%89%
190099Colgate University93%85%91%
217819College of Charleston82%57%66%
160959College of the Atlantic81%58%66%
166124College of the Holy Cross95%85%90%
231624College of William and MaryW&M95%84%91%
126678Colorado CollegeCC94%71%87%
126775Colorado School of Mines93%67%82%
126818Colorado State UniversityCSU86%47%68%
190150Columbia University in the City of New York98%80%95%
128902Connecticut College88%76%83%
190372Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art92%62%82%
153162Cornell College80%59%62%
190415Cornell University98%87%95%
181002Creighton University92%74%80%
190512CUNY Bernard M Baruch College87%55%73%
190594CUNY Hunter College80%38%58%
182670Dartmouth College98%75%95%
198385Davidson College95%86%91%
202523Denison University89%73%81%
144740DePaul University85%55%69%
150400DePauw University90%69%80%
212009Dickinson College91%68%82%
153269Drake University84%67%76%
184348Drew University87%63%73%
212054Drexel University89%31%78%
198419Duke University97%87%97%
212106Duquesne University85%67%76%
150455Earlham College78%65%71%
198464East Carolina UniversityECU82%43%64%
133492Eckerd College78%59%68%
212197Elizabethtown College84%69%76%
198516Elon University90%80%83%
133553Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University84%42%65%
165662Emerson College88%71%78%
165671Emmanuel College81%59%68%
139658Emory University96%81%91%
129242Fairfield University90%82%84%
191126Fashion Institute of TechnologyFIT91%Not Reported83%*
133669Florida Atlantic UniversityFAU82%50%61%
133881Florida Institute of Technology79%48%65%
133951Florida International UniversityFIU92%59%71%
134079Florida Southern College79%65%69%
134097Florida State UniversityFSU95%77%84%
191241Fordham University88%76%82%
212577Franklin and Marshall CollegeF&M89%76%85%
441982Franklin W Olin College of Engineering99%*73%*92%*
218070Furman University90%73%82%
232186George Mason UniversityGMU86%46%70%
131469George Washington UniversityGWU91%76%85%
131496Georgetown University97%87%95%
139861Georgia College & State University81%54%63%
139755Georgia Institute of TechnologyGeorgia Tech98%64%93%
139940Georgia State University78%33%55%
212674Gettysburg College90%75%83%
235316Gonzaga University93%74%87%
162654Goucher College78%46%59%
153384Grinnell College93%75%88%
212805Grove City College88%78%83%
173647Gustavus Adolphus College85%63%77%
191515Hamilton College95%80%92%
166018Hampshire College73%47%58%
150756Hanover College81%63%66%
166027Harvard University98%56%98%
115409Harvey Mudd CollegeHMC97%81%93%
212911Haverford College95%76%90%
107080Hendrix College79%63%71%
170286Hillsdale College96%76%88%
191630Hobart William Smith Colleges88%70%74%
191649Hofstra University83%61%69%
170301Hope College89%71%81%
131520Howard UniversityHU90%60%68%
145725Illinois Institute of TechnologyIIT86%46%73%
145646Illinois Wesleyan University83%66%80%
151351Indiana University-BloomingtonIUB91%69%81%
153603Iowa State University88%57%75%
191968Ithaca College84%66%75%
232423James Madison UniversityJMU91%66%81%
162928Johns Hopkins UniversityJHU97%87%95%
213251Juniata College81%70%73%
170532Kalamazoo College85%68%79%
155399Kansas State University86%49%70%
203535Kenyon College91%67%86%
169983Kettering University91%18%70%
146427Knox College82%50%72%
213385Lafayette College91%80%88%
146481Lake Forest College87%70%75%
239017Lawrence University88%58%78%
192323Le Moyne College84%65%73%
213543Lehigh University93%80%89%
209056Lewis & Clark College85%63%73%
159391Louisiana State UniversityLSU84%50%68%
117946Loyola Marymount UniversityLMU89%68%80%
146719Loyola University ChicagoLUC84%67%74%
163046Loyola University Maryland87%73%80%
173902Macalester College94%74%89%
161299Maine Maritime Academy83%39%65%
192819Marist College87%70%81%
239105Marquette University90%69%82%
166683Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyMIT99%83%96%
140447Mercer University84%61%73%
204024Miami University-Oxford90%70%82%
171100Michigan State UniversityMSU91%63%82%
171128Michigan Technological University87%39%69%
230959Middlebury College94%66%92%
239318Milwaukee School of EngineeringMSOE82%47%69%
176080Mississippi State University82%46%63%
178411Missouri University of Science and TechnologyMUST87%29%65%
180461Montana State University76%36%56%
140553Morehouse College85%46%55%
166939Mount Holyoke CollegeMHC90%84%84%
214175Muhlenberg College91%67%82%
262129New College of Florida74%58%65%
185828New Jersey Institute of TechnologyNJIT90%51%74%
187967New Mexico Institute of Mining and TechnologyNMIT76%32%56%
193900New York UniversityNYU95%74%88%
199193North Carolina State UniversityNC State94%68%85%
167358Northeastern University97%Not Reported91%
147767Northwestern University98%83%96%
204501Oberlin College90%60%81%
120254Occidental CollegeOxy90%68%83%
204796Ohio State UniversityOSU94%72%88%
204857Ohio UniversityOU82%50%66%
204909Ohio Wesleyan University83%51%63%
209542Oregon State UniversityOSU87%47%70%
214777Pennsylvania State UniversityPSU; Penn State92%72%85%
121150Pepperdine University89%75%84%
121257Pitzer College93%58%85%
121345Pomona College97%61%94%
194578Pratt Institute-Main88%38%74%
186131Princeton University97%75%98%
217402Providence College92%83%87%
243780Purdue University-Main Campus92%65%83%
130226Quinnipiac University88%71%78%
186201Ramapo College of New Jersey87%*59%*72%*
209922Reed College87%62%76%
194824Rensselaer Polytechnic InstituteRPI91%71%83%
217493Rhode Island School of DesignRISD93%*58%*88%*
221351Rhodes College92%73%84%
227757Rice University98%87%94%
195003Rochester Institute of TechnologyRIT88%49%72%
136950Rollins College85%69%75%
152318Rose-Hulman Institute of TechnologyRHIT92%66%79%
184782Rowan University83%50%68%
186371Rutgers University-Camden80%47%67%
186380Rutgers University-New BrunswickRU93%69%84%
186399Rutgers University-Newark84%42%66%
183239Saint Anselm College89%75%81%
179159Saint Louis UniversitySLU88%72%80%
231059Saint Michael's College82%67%74%
122409San Diego State UniversitySDSU90%56%77%
122755San Jose State UniversitySJSU87%37%68%
122931Santa Clara UniversitySCU94%81%89%
195304Sarah Lawrence CollegeSLC88%59%71%
123165Scripps College93%61%84%
236595Seattle University84%67%75%
195474Siena College84%69%76%
167783Simmons University84%65%72%
195526Skidmore College89%75%83%
167835Smith College93%70%90%
399911Soka University of America92%79%90%
228246Southern Methodist UniversitySMU91%76%83%
228343Southwestern University81%67%72%
141060Spelman College92%70%76%
195216St. Lawrence UniversitySLU88%68%81%
174844St. Olaf College91%77%85%
163976St. John's College (MD)84%50%*67%*
245652St. John's College (NM)77%39%*60%*
163912St. Mary's College of Maryland84%60%71%
243744Stanford University98%56%94%
196176State University of New York at New Paltz85%58%72%
137546Stetson University73%56%63%
186867Stevens Institute of Technology94%81%88%
167996Stonehill College87%70%80%
196097Stony Brook University89%65%78%
196219SUNY at Purchase College79%52%64%
196167SUNY College at Geneseo85%64%74%
196103SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry82%56%70%
216287Swarthmore College96%76%94%
196413Syracuse University91%76%83%
216339Temple University84%59%76%
228723Texas A&M University-College Station94%61%84%
228875Texas Christian UniversityTCU93%74%85%
229115Texas Tech University85%51%66%
187134The College of New JerseyTCNJ91%76%86%
206589The College of Wooster82%63%75%
193654The New School83%47%70%
100751The University of Alabama88%57%73%
180489The University of Montana75%34%48%
137847The University of Tampa82%55%64%
221759The University of Tennessee-KnoxvilleUTK90%57%73%
228778The University of Texas at AustinUT Austin96%74%88%
228787The University of Texas at DallasUTD; UT Dallas88%59%73%
221519The University of the South89%73%81%
124292Thomas Aquinas College91%83%84%
216366Thomas Jefferson University83%58%69%
164076Towson University83%47%70%
130590Trinity College91%78%84%
229267Trinity University92%72%81%
178615Truman State University84%58%70%
168148Tufts University96%84%94%
160755Tulane University of Louisiana94%79%87%
196866Union College90%73%84%
128328United States Air Force AcademyUSAFA95%92%92%
130624United States Coast Guard AcademyUSCGA99%*83%*88%*
197027United States Merchant Marine Academy87%73%80%
197036United States Military AcademyUSMA95%84%86%
164155United States Naval Academy97%92%92%
196088University at Buffalo84%60%74%
100663University of Alabama at BirminghamUAB82%44%63%
104179University of ArizonaUA85%50%67%
106397University of Arkansas86%56%70%
110635University of California-BerkeleyUCB: UC Berkeley97%80%93%
110644University of California-DavisUCD; UC Davis92%71%86%
110653University of California-IrvineUCI; UC Irvine93%74%86%
110662University of California-Los AngelesUCLA97%85%93%
445188University of California-MercedUC Merced82%51%69%
110671University of California-RiversideUCR; UC Riverside88%65%76%
110680University of California-San DiegoUCSD; UC San Diego94%86%88%
110705University of California-Santa BarbaraUCSB; UC Santa Barbara92%70%85%
110714University of California-Santa CruzUCSC; UC Santa Cruz89%61%76%
132903University of Central FloridaUCF92%55%76%
144050University of ChicagoUChicago99%87%96%
201885University of Cincinnati-Main Campus86%42%73%
126614University of Colorado-Boulder89%57%75%
129020University of ConnecticutUConn92%73%83%
224323University of Dallas79%37%72%
130943University of DelawareUD91%74%83%
127060University of DenverUD87%66%77%
134130University of FloridaUF97%83%91%
139959University of GeorgiaUGA95%76%88%
225511University of Houston86%43%64%
142285University of Idaho75%43%60%
145600University of Illinois at ChicagoUIC79%42%62%
145637University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUIUC94%73%85%
153658University of Iowa89%58%74%
155317University of KansasKU85%55%68%
157085University of KentuckyUK86%55%70%
157289University of Louisville79%44%62%
161253University of Maine78%41%56%
232681University of Mary Washington83%57%68%
163268University of Maryland-Baltimore CountyUMBC86%48%70%
163286University of Maryland-College ParkUMD96%77%89%
166629University of Massachusetts-AmherstUMass Amherst91%75%83%
166638University of Massachusetts-BostonUMass Boston73%33%50%
166513University of Massachusetts-LowellUMass Lowell83%44%69%
135726University of MiamiUM93%74%84%
170976University of MichiganUMich97%82%93%
174233University of Minnesota-Duluth79%48%64%
174251University of Minnesota-Morris74%50%60%
174066University of Minnesota-Twin CitiesUMN91%75%85%
176017University of MississippiOle Miss88%57%69%
178396University of Missouri-ColumbiaMizzou90%56%75%
181464University of Nebraska-LincolnUNL83%50%66%
182281University of Nevada-Las VegasUNLV78%26%49%
182290University of Nevada-RenoUNR80%42%62%
183044University of New HampshireUNH87%67%77%
199111University of North Carolina at AshevilleUNC Asheville72%43%58%
199120University of North Carolina at Chapel HillUNC Chapel Hill97%84%92%
199139University of North Carolina at CharlotteUNCC; UNC Charlotte85%50%68%
199148University of North Carolina at GreensboroUNCG; UNC Greensboro76%39%58%
199218University of North Carolina-WilmingtonUNC Wilmington85%56%72%
152080University of Notre DameUND98%89%96%
207500University of OklahomaOU89%58%76%
209551University of Oregon86%58%73%
215062University of PennsylvaniaUPenn98%86%97%
215293University of Pittsburgh93%72%84%
209825University of Portland87%70%80%
236328University of Puget Sound83%53%72%
121691University of Redlands82%56%69%
217484University of Rhode IslandURI85%59%71%
233374University of Richmond92%78%88%
195030University of Rochester92%75%86%
122436University of San DiegoUSD91%69%82%
122612University of San FranciscoUSF83%63%73%
215929University of Scranton86%77%80%
218663University of South CarolinaUSC90%70%78%
137351University of South FloridaUSF91%65%75%
123961University of Southern CaliforniaUSC97%74%92%
174914University of St. Thomas (MN)86%67%78%
230764University of Utah86%37%65%
231174University of VermontUVM89%70%78%
234076University of VirginiaUVA97%92%95%
377555University of Washington-Bothell Campus86%49%65%
236948University of Washington-SeattleUW94%74%84%
240444University of Wisconsin-MadisonUW-Madison95%75%89%
216524Ursinus College85%63%74%
221999Vanderbilt UniversityVandy96%90%93%
197133Vassar College95%84%91%
216597Villanova University96%89%92%
234030Virginia Commonwealth UniversityVCU85%46%65%
233921Virginia TechVirginia Tech92%69%87%
152673Wabash College88%71%78%
199847Wake Forest University93%84%89%
234207Washington and Lee UniversityW&L; WLU97%89%95%
164216Washington College85%61%71%
236939Washington State UniversityWSU80%41%61%
179867Washington University in St. LouisWashU96%85%94%
168218Wellesley College96%78%91%
168227Wentworth Institute of Technology83%54%70%
130697Wesleyan University95%81%92%
216764West Chester University of Pennsylvania84%53%72%
238032West Virginia UniversityWVU83%48%64%
125727Westmont College86%64%72%
149781Wheaton College (IL)92%84%87%
168281Wheaton College (MA)83%68%76%
237057Whitman College89%60%81%
125763Whittier College68%53%63%
210401Willamette University84%62%73%
168342Williams College97%71%95%
218973Wofford College90%78%82%
168421Worcester Polytechnic InstituteWPI93%84%89%
130794Yale University99%58%97%
197708Yeshiva UniversityYU92%81%84%

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