by our College Data Analytics TeamHow long does it take to earn a degree at Colorado College? Find out how many students return after their freshman year, how long it takes to graduate, and what happens to the students who don't.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With 86% students making it past their freshmen year, Colorado College has freshmen retention rates above the national average.
Nationwide, the average first to second year retention rate is 70.57%.
When looking at just colleges and universities in Colorado, the average is 70.70%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Colorado College | 86% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Colorado | 70.70% |
There were approximately 478 students in the class of 2015. How many of them actually completed their degree in a timely fashion?
After four years 79% of the cohort graduated. After six years 88% had completed their degree, and 88% after eight years.
The official graduation rate of Colorado College is 88%. 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.
The average Colorado College student takes 4.05 years to graduate with their bachelors.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 436 | 80% |
| Six Years | 478 | 88% |
| Eight Years | 2 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 66 | 12% |
Approximately 66 students or 12% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 66 students who did not complete their degree?
1 are still enrolled.
43 transferred to another institution.
Colorado College lost contact with the remaining 23 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 1.5% |
| Transferred | 43 | 65.2% |
| Dropped Out | 23 | 34.8% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 50% |
| Asian | 86% |
| Black / African-American | 88% |
| Hispanic | 85% |
| International | 92% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 89% |
| Unknown | 88% |
| White | 89% |
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 Colorado College 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 students at Colorado College represent 95% of the students in the class of 2015, and 94.98% of Colorado College bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 79%, first-time students in the Colorado College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Colorado College graduation rate was 87%, and by the eight year mark, 88% 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.
| First-Time / Full-Time Completions | Colorado College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 79% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 87% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 88% | 47.82% |
65 first-time / full-time students or 12% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
1 are still enrolled.
42 transferred to another institution.
Colorado College lost contact with the remaining 23 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 1 | 1.54% |
| Transferred | 42 | 64.62% |
| Dropped Out | 23 | 35.38% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Colorado College first-time, part-time students.
25 Colorado College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 4.57% 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 96%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average for students in this category.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 96%.
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.
| Returning / Full-Time Completions | Colorado College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 96% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 96% | 55.07% |
1 non first-time / part-time students or 4% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
1 transferred to another institution.
Colorado College lost contact with the remaining 0 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 1 | 100.00% |
| Dropped Out | 0 | 0.00% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Colorado College returning, part-time students.
