American River Graduation Rate & Retention Rates

American River College 2023 Graduation & Retention Report

Make an informed decision about your education by understanding American River retention and graduation rates. First year retention rates let you know how many first-time, full-time students students come back for their second year. Graduation rates tell you how many students complete their degree and how long it takes.

• American River Retention Rate
• American River Graduation Rate
  • First Time Undergrads Attending Full Time
  • First Time Undergrads Attending Part Time
  • Non-First Time Undergrads Attending Full Time
  • Non-First Time Undergrads Attending Part Time
• American River Drop Out Rate
• Methodology & References

American River Retention Rate

Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.

With 64% students making it past their freshmen year, American River has freshmen retention rates similar to the national average.

Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.

When looking at just colleges and universities in California, the average is 73.07%.

American River Graduation Rates

There were approximately 11,489 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?

After four years 35% of the cohort graduated. After six years 26% had completed their degree, and 28% after eight years.

The official graduation rate of American River is 26%. This is the percentage of students who completed their degree within 150% of the published time. That means six years for a standard bachelor's degree program.

American River Graduation Rates vs. National Average

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American River Drop Out Rate

Approximately 32023 students or 72% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.

What happened to the 32023 students who did not complete their degree?

• 0 are still enrolled.

• 14560 transferred to another institution.

• American River lost contact with the remaining 16566 who we assumed dropped out.

American River Graduation Rates by Race/Ethnicity

Some Students Take More Time To Graduate

Some schools have mainly first-time, full-time students, while others cater to part-time students, transfer students, or adult learners. For a variety of reasons first-time, full-time students under the age of 25 are usually more likely to graduate in four years.

Traditional Students:

First-time, full-time students under the age of 25.

Non-Traditional Students:

Any student that is not first-time, full-time, and under the age of 25.

The majority of students at American River are considered 'traditional students' who are first-time attending full-time.

Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.

First-Time / Full-Time American River Graduation Rates

First-time / full-time students at American River College represent 3% of the students in the class of 2015, and 5.19% of American River bachelor's degree graduations.

With a four-year graduation rate of 35%, first-time students in the American River class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.

After six years, the American River graduation rate was 40%, and by the eight year mark, 43% of the cohort had completed their degree.

Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is 37.92% after four years, 46.43% after six years, and 47.82% after eight years.

American River First-Time / Full-Time Graduation Rate vs. National Average

First-Time / Full-Time American River Drop Out Rates

850 first-time / full-time students or 57% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

• 0 are still enrolled.

• 303 transferred to another institution.

• American River lost contact with the remaining 512 who we assumed dropped out.

First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rates

First-time / part-time students at American River College represent 9.38% of the students in the class of 2015.

With a six-year graduation rate of 17%, first-time, part-time students in the American River class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.

After eight years, the graduation rate was 19%.

Nationwide, the average graduation rate for first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 14.37% after four years, 21.59% after six years, 23.72% after eight years.

First-Time / Part-Time American River Graduation Rates vs. National Average

First-Time / Part-Time American River Drop Out Rates

3365 first-time / part-time students or 81% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

• 88 are still enrolled.

• 969 transferred to another institution.

• American River lost contact with the remaining 2308 who we assumed dropped out.

Non First-Time / Full-Time Students

6957 American River students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 15.66% of the students in the class of 2015.

Non first-time students could include transfer students or adults who have returned to school after an absense.

With a six year graduation rate of 43%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average for students in this category.

After eight years, the graduation rate was 45%.

Nationwide, the average graduation rate for non first-time undergraduates attending classes full-time is: 49.57% after four years, 53.83% after six years, and 55.07% after eight years.

American River Non First-Time / Full-Time Graduation Rate vs. National Average

Non First-Time / Full-Time American River Drop Out Rates

3839 non first-time / part-time students or 55% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

• 104 are still enrolled.

• 1901 transferred to another institution.

• American River lost contact with the remaining 1834 who we assumed dropped out.

Non First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rates

31818 American River students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 71.63% of the students in the class of 2015.

With a six year graduation rate of 23%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate lower than the national average.

After eight years, the graduation rate was 25%.

Nationwide, the average graduation rate for non first-time undergraduates attending classes part-time is: 36.03% after six years, 36.03% after eight years.

American River Non First-Time / Part-Time Graduation Rate vs. National Average

Non First-Time / Part-Time American River Drop Out Rates

23969 non first-time / part-time students or 75% did not complete their degree within eight years.

Of those who did not finish:

• 670 are still enrolled.

• 11387 transferred to another institution.

• American River lost contact with the remaining 11912 who we assumed dropped out.

More Resources:

• An Explanation of Freshman Retention Rates.

• How Common is it to Transfer to a Different College?

• Are Non-Traditional Students Less Likely to Graduate?

• How Many People Drop-Out of College?

• How Average Time to Graduate Can Affect the Value of Your Degree.

References

• National Center for Education Statistics