Graduation rates at two-year public colleges are notoriously low, and have long been criticized for inadequately reflecting the value of these colleges to students. Many community colleges aim to prepare students to transfer to a four-year institution, which is a measure of student success; data from the U.S. Department of Education, however, don’t capture whether such transfer students eventually graduate. The table below ranks colleges that mainly serve students who are seeking an associate degree or preparing to transfer to a four-year institution by the percentages of first-time, full-time students who completed within 150 percent of the normal time, transferred to another higher-education institution, or were still enrolled at the original college. Over all, more than 57 percent of students accomplished one of those three goals, even though graduation rates in isolation were under 30 percent.
Note: Only degree-granting U.S. colleges that participate in Title IV federal student-aid programs and that had at least 50 students in the adjusted entering cohort were included in the rankings, but overall figures also include colleges with smaller entering cohorts. The graduation rate for two-year public colleges is measured as of August 31, 2018, for full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates who first enrolled in 2015 and who earned a certificate or degree within 150 percent of the normal time. Transfer-out rates are based on the total number of students from the adjusted cohort who transferred out at any time within 150 percent of the normal time to completion, without having completed a certificate or degree, and enrolled in a program at another eligible institution for which the reporting institution provided substantial preparation. The category “four-year colleges that primarily offer associate degrees” are institutions that are considered four-year because they award some bachelor’s degrees and that are classified as associate or baccalaureate/associate institutions in the 2018 Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. The graduation rate for four-year public colleges was measured as of August 31, 2018, for full-time, first-time degree- or certificate-seeking undergraduates who first enrolled in 2012 and who earned a certificate or degree within 150 percent of the normal time. Overall transfer rates are likely to be understated because only institutions whose missions include providing substantial preparation for students to enroll in another eligible institution must report transfers-out. A hyphen indicates data were not applicable or not available. Hyphens in the “transfer-out students” column interrupt the sequence when that column is sorted in ascending or descending order, leading to imperfect results. The numbers of enrollees in the cohorts were adjusted to exclude students who died, were permanently disabled, or left to serve in the military or with a foreign-aid agency or official church mission. Percentages are rounded, but ranks are ordered on the basis of unrounded figures. Tied institutions are listed alphabetically. Questions or comments on the Chronicle List should be sent to Ruth Hammond.
Source: Chronicle analysis of U.S. Department of Education data
