by our College Data Analytics TeamAre students coming back to MDC after their first year? Are MDC students graduating in a timely manner? What happens to the students who don't graduate? Get all your questions answered here.
Freshmen retention rate refers to the percentage of first-time / full-time students who return for their second year.
With
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 | |
|---|---|
| MDC | |
| Nationwide | 70.57% |
| Florida | 70.38% |
Of the 7,490 students in the class of 2015, how many completed their degree on time?
Four years after beginning their degree, 33% of those students had graduated. By 2017, six years after starting their degree, 33% of the students had graduated and after eight years 34% of this class completed their degree.
The official graduation rate of MDC is 33%. 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.
| Completion Within | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 6,172 | 27% |
| Six Years | 7,490 | 33% |
| Eight Years | 379 | 1% |
| Did Not Complete | 15,032 | 66% |
Approximately 15032 students or 66% of the cohort did not complete their degree within eight years.
What happened to the 15032 students who did not complete their degree?
0 are still enrolled.
3641 transferred to another institution.
MDC lost contact with the remaining 10723 who we assumed dropped out.
| Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.0% |
| Transferred | 3641 | 24.2% |
| Dropped Out | 10,723 | 71.3% |
| Race/Ethnicity | Graduation Rate |
|---|---|
| American Indian or Alaskan Native | 43% |
| Asian | 51% |
| Black / African-American | 27% |
| Hispanic | 34% |
| International | 34% |
| Multi-Ethnic | 22% |
| Unknown | 29% |
| White | 35% |
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 MDC 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 Miami Dade College represent 55% of the students in the class of 2015, and 65.58% of MDC bachelor's degree graduations.
With a four-year graduation rate of 33%, first-time students in the MDC class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After six years, the MDC graduation rate was 39%, and by the eight year mark, 41% 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 | MDC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 33% | 37.92% |
| Six Years | 39% | 46.43% |
| Eight Years | 41% | 47.82% |
7428 first-time / full-time students or 59% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
0 are still enrolled.
1683 transferred to another institution.
MDC lost contact with the remaining 5385 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Full-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 0 | 0.00% |
| Transferred | 1683 | 22.66% |
| Dropped Out | 5,385 | 72.50% |
First-time / part-time students at Miami Dade College represent 31.74% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six-year graduation rate of 21%, first-time, part-time students in the MDC class of 2015 who attended classes full-time were less likely than average to graduate on time.
After eight years, the graduation rate was 23%.
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 Completions | MDC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 15% | 14.37% |
| Six Years | 21% | 21.59% |
| Eight Years | 23% | 23.72% |
5634 first-time / part-time students or 77% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
266 are still enrolled.
1129 transferred to another institution.
MDC lost contact with the remaining 4239 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 266 | 4.72% |
| Transferred | 1129 | 20.04% |
| Dropped Out | 4,239 | 75.24% |
1174 MDC students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 5.11% 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 45%, 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 46%.
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 | MDC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 49.57% |
| Six Years | 45% | 53.83% |
| Eight Years | 46% | 55.07% |
630 non first-time / part-time students or 54% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
11 are still enrolled.
220 transferred to another institution.
MDC lost contact with the remaining 399 who we assumed dropped out.
| First-Time / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 11 | 1.75% |
| Transferred | 220 | 34.92% |
| Dropped Out | 399 | 63.33% |
1905 MDC students were classified as full-time / not first-time. This represents 8.30% of the students in the class of 2015.
With a six year graduation rate of 28%, 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 30%.
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 | MDC | Nationwide |
|---|---|---|
| Four Years | 0% | 30.46% |
| Six Years | 28% | 36.03% |
| Eight Years | 30% | 37.80% |
1340 non first-time / part-time students or 70% did not complete their degree within eight years.
Of those who did not finish:
31 are still enrolled.
609 transferred to another institution.
MDC lost contact with the remaining 700 who we assumed dropped out.
| Returning / Part-Time Non-Completions | Undergraduates | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| Still Enrolled | 31 | 2.31% |
| Transferred | 609 | 45.45% |
| Dropped Out | 700 | 52.24% |
