by our College Data Analytics TeamMake an informed decision about your education by understanding Meridian College 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.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With 72% students making it past their freshmen year, Meridian 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 Florida, the average is 70.38%.
| Retention Rate | |
|---|---|
| Meridian College | 72% |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Florida | 70.38% |
Of the 153 students in the class of 2015, how many completed their degree on time?
After four years 68% of the cohort graduated. After six years 70% had completed their degree, and 70% 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 Meridian College graduation rate 70%.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 153 | 70% |
| Six Years | 153 | 70% |
| Eight Years | 0 | 0% |
| Did Not Complete | 66 | 30% |
Approximately 66 students or 30% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 66 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
19 transferred to another institution.
Meridian College lost contact with the remaining 47 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 19 | 28.8% |
| Dropped Out | 47 | 71.2% |
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 Meridian 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 Meridian College represent 70% of the students in the class of 2015, and 68.63% of Meridian College bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 68%, first-time students in the Meridian College class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were more likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the Meridian College graduation rate was 68%, and by the eight year mark, 68% 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 | Meridian College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 68% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 68% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 68% | 47.82% |
49 first-time / full-time students or 32% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
15 transferred to another institution.
Meridian College lost contact with the remaining 34 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 15 | 30.61% |
| Dropped Out | 34 | 69.39% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Meridian College first-time, part-time students.
65 Meridian College students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 29.55% 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 74%.
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 | Meridian College | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 74% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 74% | 55.07% |
17 non first-time / part-time students or 26% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
4 transferred to another institution.
Meridian College lost contact with the remaining 13 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 4 | 23.53% |
| Dropped Out | 13 | 76.47% |
Unfortunately, we don’t have access to data on Meridian College returning, part-time students.
