by our College Data Analytics TeamHow long does it take to earn a degree at GSU? 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 58% students making it past their freshmen year, GSU 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 Illinois, the average is 72.64%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| GSU | 58% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Illinois | 72.64% |
How many of the estimated 874 students in the class of 2015 completed their degree within eight years?
After four years <nil>% of the cohort graduated. After six years 62% had completed their degree, and 64% after eight years.
Any student who completes their bachelor's degree within six years is considered to have graduated on time, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. This makes the offical GSU graduation rate 62%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 801 | 57% |
| Six Years | 874 | 62% |
| Eight Years | 26 | 2% |
| Did Not Complete | 507 | 36% |
Approximately 507 students or 36% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 507 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
325 transferred to another institution.
GSU lost contact with the remaining 173 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 325 | 64.1% |
| Dropped Out | 173 | 34.1% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| Asian | 25% |
| Black / African-American | 20% |
| Hispanic | 33% |
| International | 100% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 25% |
| Unknown | 26% |
| White | 31% |
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.
Comparing the graduation rates of specific cohorts shown below will be more revealing than the overall statistics shared above.
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on GSU first-time, full-time students.
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on GSU first-time, part-time students.
589 GSU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 41.86% 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 74%, 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 75%.
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 | GSU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 74% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 75% | 55.07% |
148 non first-time / part-time students or 25% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
3 are still enrolled.
93 transferred to another institution.
GSU lost contact with the remaining 52 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 3 | 2.03% |
| Transferred | 93 | 62.84% |
| Dropped Out | 52 | 35.14% |
818 GSU students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 58.14% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 54%, returning students in the class of 2015 and attended classes full-time had a graduation rate higher than the national average.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 56%.
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.
| Returning / Part-Time Completions | GSU | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 54% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 56% | 37.80% |
359 non first-time / part-time students or 44% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
6 are still enrolled.
232 transferred to another institution.
GSU lost contact with the remaining 121 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 6 | 1.67% |
| Transferred | 232 | 64.62% |
| Dropped Out | 121 | 33.70% |
